A New Beginning
by Little Gertrude
Summary: Sophie, an ordinary young witch from Hufflepuff is given the chance to build a new life for herself when she is asked by a certain Grey Wizard to join Thorin and his company of dwarves on a quest to reclaim Erebor - But will it all end in futile? Very OC & Slow Thorin/OC
1. Brother and Sister

Chapter One

"Sophie come on! At the speed you're moving at we're going to miss the train! And I know you don't want to be late on your first day of Hogwarts!" Sophie's brother Jesse called to her as he stood waiting in the hallway.

"I'm…coming…!" Sophie came down dragging her suitcase, slightly out of breath with her hands full of new text books piled on top of each other.

Her glasses with massive lenses had slipped down to one side of her face so that it sat lop-sided.

"Well aren't you a bit of a sight" Jesse said, chuckling affectionately at his baby sister as he took the books from her.

Sophie shook her arms in relief from the weight and fixed her glasses before grinning up at Jesse.

"How many houses did you say there were in Hogwarts?"

"Four – Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff and Slytherin."

"I want to be in your house - Ravenclaw!" Sophie exclaimed with determination after thinking for a while and her brother laughed.

"The Thinking Hat will put you in the right house for you" he replied before closing the front door behind them.

The siblings almost did miss the Hogwarts express but they managed to get on just in the nick of time. While Jesse went to meet up with the other prefects Sophie sat in her seat by the window and stared outside. She liked the rhythmic sound the wheels of the train made as it sped down the railway to the wizarding school she had only heard about from Jesse. Would she fit in? Would she make any new friends? What if she wasn't good at using magic? All these thoughts swam around Sophie's mind as she closed her eyes and fell into a blissful nap.

Jesse and Sophie Burns were, as you would have already guessed, brother and sister. However unless someone told you, you would never thought that they were related when you saw them for they were so different in both looks and character. Jesse was the older brother and the fair one, with soft brown curls and calming turquoise coloured eyes. He was smart (never missing out on any marks for his OWLs – a true Ravenclaw he was) and funny, and easily the most popular young wizard pupil in Hogwarts. Sophie on the other hand was a bit of an introvert. Although she did like being around others she was shy and preferred staying at home with Jesse. Unlike her brother, she had missed out on inheriting her mother's beautiful blue-green eyes. Instead her eyes had a grey shade to them and Sophie wore thick rimmed glasses with the largest lens for she did not have good eyesight. Her hair was thick and so curly that even after being combed, they stuck out a bit like she had just gotten out of bed. And whereas Jesse was tall and well-built, Sophie was quite short with a petite frame.

However despite these differences Jesse and Sophie got on well with each other better than any other siblings. The siblings had never known their father, and their mother sadly passed on when Sophie was only eight years old. But Sophie was never unhappy since she still had Jesse who to Sophie, encompassed everything to do with family and love. For as long as she could remember, Jesse had always been there to look out for her.

"…Hufflepuff!" The Sorting Hat announced as it sat on top of Sophie's head.

Her fellow students applauded her as she jumped down from the stool. As she walked down towards the yellow banded Hufflepuff table, Sophie could see the Ravenclaw head boy amidst the sea of students grinning at her with such brotherly pride in his eyes, and she returned the smile before sitting down in an empty seat.

ooOoOoOoOoo

The first three years of Hogwarts went past like a blur for Sophie. She made new friends despite her initial fear, some who she grew to be very close with. Sophie did not get full marks in most of her subjects unlike Jesse, except for potions. It was only in potions class that Sophie flourished – even grumpy Professor Snape occasionally threw her small praises for her potion brewing skills.

"Yeah well, who actually believes that divinations is a real subject?!" Sophie remembered Jesse saying once as he comforted her after she got her test results back and found that she had not passed divinations.

Sophie sighed. Sometimes she wished she had half as much confidence in herself as Jesse.

It was a chilly October afternoon when Sophie was sitting at a bench by herself. Defence against the dark arts class had not turned out too good for Sophie - she could not block any of the hits her professor shot towards her no matter how quickly she tried to conjure up the defence spells. Quite frankly, her self-esteem level was lying around zero.

"Why, Ms Burns! Are you not cold sitting out here all by yourself?" Sophie swivelled her head around in surprise to see the headmaster standing in front of her.

"I just wanted to be by myself for a while at somewhere quiet, Professor. Just to clear my thoughts a bit."

"Well I hear you are quite a potions master. Potions is not an easy study Ms Burns." Professor Dumbledore inquired with a warm smile as he sat himself next to Sophie on the bench.

"Umm I guess I'm alright at it…but I'm pretty much hopeless at everything else" Sophie replied unintelligently, not sure where the conversation was heading.

"That is not true." The headmaster simply replied before pausing to allow Sophie to think over what he had just said.

"The grand Quidditch match will be happening soon. If I am correct your brother used to play when he was at school?"

"Yes, he was the catcher on the Ravenclaw team. But now he's training to become an Auror" Sophie said proudly.

"Well that sounds like an exciting prospect to look forward to," the headmaster replied as he stood up to leave.

Before he turned though, he looked down at Sophie with a small glint in his eyes.

"Ms Burns, you may think that you are not as a strong wizard as your brother but believe me when I say this. You have a different kind of strength inside you – the kind Hufflepuff loyalty and heartedness. One that is different to the Ravenclaw intelligence, the Gryffindor courage, or the Slytherin cunningness, and equally important. You cannot see this strength inside yourself yet, but your capacity for love and kindness will soon change your fate and you will do great things. Just give yourself time."

With that, Professor Dumbledore gave a confused Sophie a wink before walking away to his office, humming a song she could not tell what.


	2. Murder in the dark

Chapter Two

A week had passed since Sophie had returned home from her third year at Hogwarts and Christmas was only a couple of days away. Christmas was Sophie's favourite holiday season but then again, isn't it everyone's favourite time of the year? She had spent the day baking gingerbread men, chocolate pudding and Christmas mince pies for her and Jesse to snack on the next day. If there was one thing that Sophie enjoyed more than brewing potions it would have had to be baking. In a way its concept was similar to potion making – combine the most basic ingredients together in such a way that the final result is something amazing. Jesse always used to say that her baking was so good it would be able to put a smile on even the grumpiest person in the world.

She had just finished putting away the washed baking trays and measuring cups back into the cupboard when Jesse opened the front door and ran into the kitchen.

"Sophie," he said, and Sophie couldn't miss the urgency in his voice.

"We have to get out of here. Now."

"What's wrong?" Sophie asked but Jesse's answer only voiced the fearful thought that had been growing in her mind.

"Death eaters. They're attacking the area. We don't have much time if we're going to escape, come on!"

Sophie and Jesse had only just come out of their front door with their wands in their hands when a death eater shot a killing curse in their direction. The green spark flew through the darkness and missed Jesse's head by only a couple of centimetres.

"Sophie, grab my hand!" Jesse yelled and as soon as their fingers touched he disapparated them away.

Sophie wondered if they would ever see their home again.

ooOoOoOoOoo

They arrived at what seemed like a forest. The darkness of the night made it difficult to know for sure.

"Where are we?" Sophie asked her brother as she shivered in her thin nightie – she did not have the time to dress more appropriately.

"The dark forest" Jesse replied before taking off his jacket and putting it around Sophie's shoulders.

The jacket was so big on her that despite the situation he managed to crack a smile as he looked at his sister.

"Sophie I want you to listen to me carefully" Jesse said seriously looking at Sophie in the eye.

"If we are attacked by any of the death eaters, I want you to run. Just…run and hide, okay?"

"Okay" Sophie replied, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Jesse…I'm scared."

"Me too sis" Jesse said in a low voice after a pause and Sophie's eyes widened in surprise and renewed fear at her brother's words.

"Hah! You thought you could escape? You dirty mudbloods!" A death eater snarled from behind the siblings who turned around in shock.

"Sophie! Run!"

Before she could even fathom what was going on, Jesse grabbed her hands in his and they were off running, dodging the green sparks cutting through the air. Their pursuer screamed in annoyance as Jesse blocked a particularly nasty curse and he chased the siblings through the tall trees.

It was so dark and Sophie had no sense of direction as to where she was running.

"Oomff!"

Sophie's foot got caught against the root of a tree and she tripped over head first to the ground. When she lifted her face she saw herself face to face with the death eater. The death eater pointed his wand at Sophie as she lay frozen in fright, and Jesse ran to shield her from the fatal killing curse with his own body. Everything happened at once in slow motion in front of Sophie's eyes.

The green jet of light hit Jesse right in the chest and he fell in front of a screaming Sophie, his brilliant turquoise eyes no longer sparkling.

"Jesse…Jesse…no…" Sophie could do nothing but cry as she held her brother's lifeless body in her hands.

The murderer cackled an evil laugh as he advanced towards her.

"What are you going to now little girl?" he said in a raspy voice, his mouth twisted into an ugly grin.

"Well your brother isn't here to save you now. He's DEAD. But don't worry. You can join that filthy mudblood brother of yours once I'm done with you haha."

But before the death eater could pass the curse through his lips a blinding bright white light surrounded the two figures and Sophie could not see or hear anything. She realised in panic that she could no longer feel Jesse's body in her hands.

Suddenly she felt the ground give away from below her and Sophie found herself falling. Sophie couldn't tell what was going on and she tried to grasp the bits of reality before she passed out.

_"It is two days before Christmas. We were running away from the death eater. Jesse is now dead. And it's all my fault he's gone."_


	3. Arrival to Middle Earth

Chapter Three

In a different world far away from the one where the mysterious light took Sophie, another wizard worked away busily under the setting sun. This wizard was called Radagast the Brown who had a gentle heart full of love for the woods and anything else that needed to be taken care of.

The old wizard was just putting away the last of the medicinal roots he had collected into his little pouch (which he shared with a couple of stick insects) when he felt a sudden burst of energy, not too far away from him. Now, Radagast may be a bit eccentric, however he was still a wizard and he did not need any help in realising that there could be only one explanation for such powerful magic he was sensing – there was the presence of another wizard. Thinking it must be Gandalf (who often visited him when time permitted it), Radagast picked up his staff and quickly scuttled over to where the energy was radiating from to greet him- about fifty metres from where he was standing not too long ago. However when the wizard arrived to the spot, he almost fell over backwards in surprise.

It was not the Grey Wizard as Radagast expected, but a witch. Well, more of a girl than a witch, he had to say. She looked hardly over the age of thirteen. The poor thing looked a right mess, lying there on the ground crying softly. Her funny looking cloak was ripped so that her bare legs were showing and there were scratches up and down her small body. A wave of pity washed over the old wizard as he bent down to help the girl.

Sophie could hear footsteps coming towards her, but she no longer cared about what happened to her. She just prayed that her death would not be a painful one. So she was most shocked to see not a death eater but a peculiar looking old man crouching down in front of her.

"My dear child, what is your name?" The old man asked gently with such warmth that Sophie felt no reason not to answer his question.

"My name is Sophie."

"And what is a young little witch like yourself doing in the Green Woods?"

"I was running….wait," Sophie paused in mid-sentence.

"Did you just say the Green Woods? Is this not the Dark Forest?" Her confusion quickly changed to panic.

"Who…who are you? Where am I?"

The old man stared at her distraught face before saying, "No child. I believe that whatever world you were in before is far away from you now. But do not fear. I am also a wizard - Radagast the Brown. You are in Middle Earth."

It took Sophie a long moment for everything to sink in. So the white light had transported her to a place called…Middle Earth. Funny name, she thought to herself. She had just learnt that she was now a long distance away from home and Jesse…..Jesse! Sophie felt her stomach quench and new streams of tears roll down her cheeks as she remembered the horrible end her brother had met, all because she couldn't look after herself. Her stomach felt like it was twisting into itself and Sophie vomited onto the ground, some of the substance getting caught in her tangled hair. Sophie had almost forgotten that Radagast the wizard was still beside her. The old wizard patiently patted her back as she bent over and continued to gag.

"Sophie, have you got a place to stay for the night?" Radagast asked Sophie when she had finally recovered, offering her his hand.

She sniffed before taking the wizard's outstretched hand and standing up.

"No, I haven't" she said looking into Radagast's kind face, "I don't really have a home anymore."

"Well, you are most welcome to stay with me, dear child" Radagast announced smiling, and despite everything Sophie couldn't help showing the smallest of smiles back.

"Thank you, thank you" she whispered, over and over again as the old wizard led the young witch to his humble home.


	4. A visit from the Grey Wizard

Chapter Four

Sophie admired the orange stained evening sky as she directed her little pony down the twisted road into the Green Woods. It had been twelve winters since Radagast (bless his heart) had taken her into his wing, and she lived a peaceful life with him in the exotic tree house. It was literally a tree house where they lived in the middle of the woods, for the trunk of the tree had grown right through the middle of their kitchen!

She didn't live a life of complete isolation, which Sophie was grateful for. Although Radagast rarely ventured out of the edges of the woods, he did allow Sophie to visit the nearby town whenever she pleased. This proved to be a great arrangement as Sophie could take in the various medicinal herbs and roots she and Radagast had collected from the forest to the town's marketplace. There, Sophie could exchange them for clothes and other necessities that did not grow in the Green Woods.

Sometimes, when business was particularly good, Sophie would also bring home a basket full of flour, sugar, eggs, butter and other baking ingredients to work with when she returned. She missed brewing potions – Middle Earth did not have any of the ingredients to brew the potions she had learnt at Hogwarts, which was a very long time ago. But baking was still an available activity which Sophie embraced with passion. To Sophie, baking and magic had become one of her only links to her past life….and Jesse.

When Sophie arrived to the treehouse she was pleased to see a particular brown horse grazing in front of their vegetable patch. She didn't have to walk into their small kitchen to know that Gandalf the Grey had come to visit.

Sophie had first met the old wizard a few months after she had settled into Radagast's home and if Gandalf was surprised to see her, he didn't show it. Gandalf had merely smiled down at Sophie (who was thirteen years old at the time) and welcomed her to Middle Earth. The next time he visited another few months later Gandalf had brought with him several books containing different spells for Sophie to read.

"It appears as though you are not the first witch or wizard to travel between different worlds Sophie," Gandalf had said with a chuckle when he saw Sophie's surprised face which was quickly followed by delight.

"You will need to master your magical abilities. Middle Earth is not a very forgiving place, although I daresay your world was not either."

Thanks to Gandalf, Sophie was able to continue practicing her magic (with a little help from her two wizard friends) and she could defend herself against harm with her wand.

Sure enough, Gandalf the Grey was sitting at the dining table in their little kitchen smoking away on his old pipe. His wise eyes lit up as he saw Sophie skip in through the door.

"Gandalf! I haven't seen you in ages!" Sophie exclaimed happily as she hugged the old wizard.

"Yes, I have been rather occupied these past few weeks. And where is Radagast? Nobody was at home when I arrived."

"Radagast is probably out in the woods somewhere collecting specimens…he says it's important." Sophie replied.

She didn't mention what Radagast had told her. He had said that something was wrong with the woods and he had to go find out what the problem was. For the past few days Radagast had been very busy – most days he was out of the house before Sophie had even woken up from her sleep.

"Did he now?" Gandalf asked with a slight frown. Sophie knew she didn't have to tell the wizard anything, and he would still be able to read her thoughts. But his face soon cleared after a few moments and Gandalf was back to his cheery self.

"Well, never mind. I have actually come to see you, Sophie" Gandalf said with a twinkle in his eyes.

Now, that took Sophie by surprise. Gandalf had only visited to discuss news with Radagast. She wondered what favour the wizard would ever need to ask her.

"Sophie….how would you like to go on a little adventure with me?"

"Adventure?!" Sophie spluttered, nearly dropping her glasses which she was wiping with the end of her cloak.

"Would you not aid a company of dwarves to reclaim their kingdom, Erebor? I feel they will need your help."

"Erebor?" Sophie asked with disbelief. Gandalf could not be serious.

"You mean the Lonely Mountains? The kingdom guarded by Smaug? How can I help to defeat a dragon, Gandalf?! You know my magic is not strong enough to take on beasts in Middle Earth…let alone a dragon!"

"But my dear child!" Gandalf exclaimed. "Fate has something great in store for you. How will you ever find out the reason you have been sent here to Middle Earth if you do not try to seek the answer?"

"Fate?" Sophie snorted, for once not caring if she sounded rude.

"I'm sorry Gandalf. But I do not believe in fate. I don't believe that it was my fate to live and Jesse's to die like he did….I'm sorry, I can't help you." Sophie said quietly with a shake of her head.

"Very well then," Gandalf nodded and he stood up to leave.

"If you change your mind come to the eastern region of Eriador. You will find the dwarf company and myself there." With that, Gandalf put his hat back on and picked up his staff.

But before leaving he turned around to face Sophie once more.

"Just one more thing Sophie. Do not hide yourself from the rest of the world, and especially your fate. Although your fate may seem to be against you right now, there is always a chance for change…and happiness."

"Goodbye, Gandalf." Sophie walked over to hug the wizard goodbye. She really was sorry that she could not help him.

Gandalf smiled down at her as pulled himself onto his horse and trotted away.

ooOoOoOoOoOoo

It was the middle of the night and Sophie was still thinking over Gandalf's final words to her when Radagast came in through the wooden door noisily. She could hear the thumping of rabbit feet and the slide of the sleigh.

"Sophie, my dear! How was your day?" He asked cheerfully as he placed his little hedgehog friends onto the counter.

"Gandalf visited," Sophie began carefully.

"Oh yes? And did you listen to his proposal?"

"Well…hang on! How did you know Gandalf had asked me to go on an 'adventure'?" Sophie asked curiously.

"Gandalf had told me about it the last time he visited," Radagast replied with a smile and Sophie sighed.

"I'm guessing you said no?" He asked her and Sophie nodded.

"I could never think of leaving this place. I am quite happy living with you."

Radagast looked at her with the same kind face he had when he first found her in the woods twelve years ago.

"Sophie, dear. I know what it feels like to have the world take away the ones you loved the most. But a young woman like you should not be living in the woods with only an old wizard for company, it's not right. You deserve a rich and exciting life. I have been sent to look over the woods – to protect it. Can you honestly say that you have never wondered why you were sent to Middle Earth? I feel it would be best for you to go on this trip with Gandalf."

Sophie didn't say anything. To be honest, she HAD often wondered many times why she was in Middle Earth. After a few years she sort of just accepted it and had thought to live a quiet life in the woods away from any more pain. Sophie wasn't lying when she had told Gandalf that she did not believe in fate. But deep down Sophie did feel the urge to go beyond the woods and town (even if it was a VERY small urge). Radagast's statement seemed to awaken that old curiosity inside her. Should she risk it and go with Gandalf?

When Sophie looked at Radagast's face again, he could see she had made up her mind.

"I will miss you," Sophie said with a thick voice as she hugged the old wizard.

"And so will I, Sophie" Radagast said as he returned the hug. "Child…be safe."

The next morning when the birds had only just woken up, Sophie shared her final farewells with Radagast before riding on her pony away from the little treehouse to the eastern Eriador.


	5. The old woman and the King

Chapter Five

Sophie traveled in an eastern direction through the woods. It had been an easy ride most of the way and Sophie was surprised to see that she hadn't minded sitting on her pony the entire day, riding through the quiet trees. However she did miss having company and would have liked someone to talk to during the day (for her pony Daisy wasn't really the talkative type). The only sound other than Daisy's hooves on the ground were the gentle whistling of the branches of the tall trees. Sophie remembered what Radagast had once told her about the trees being able to move and talk to one another, but she wasn't sure if she believed the wizard's tale - it was hard to imagine.

It was nearly nightfall when Sophie arrived to the area where Gandalf had said he would be with the dwarves. She had arrived much earlier than she had anticipated which meant she would have to camp out here for the night by herself. The thought of spending the night alone in the woods scared Sophie and it was only then that she realized Gandalf had not guaranteed that this adventure would be a safe one. Sophie had often heard from the men in the villages that she visited terrifying stories of orcs attacking, and she had also read in books descriptions of great beasts that existed in Middle Earth like mountain trolls. Sophie wasn't entirely sure her spells could protect her from all of these dangers, and she felt fear plant itself deep inside her. But Sophie quickly pushed the thoughts out of her mind and occupied herself with building a campfire.

"Incendio!"

Bright orange sparks escaped out of Sophie's wand and before long she had a nice campfire going. Warmth radiated out of the flames and Sophie felt a lot calmer than she did before. She sat down on a long piece of log and opened up the satchel containing her supplies for the trip - an extra shirt and trousers, a small dagger she used to collect herbs (not really fit for any fighting but it was the only object Sophie had that was close to a weapon other than her wand), and some food and her water skin. Sophie also had a small pouch of various medicinal herbs which she kept tied to her belt.

The sound of a tree branch snapping made Sophie jump and she quickly scanned over the area. But it was only Daisy who had moved closer to the fire and was now peacefully grazing beside her. Sophie sighed and delved into her satchel to have some dinner. She had just pulled out a couple of scones when she heard another sound. When Sophie lifted up her head she saw what looked like two hungry eyes from behind the thick tree trunk.

oOoOoOoOoOo

At first Sophie almost screamed in fear but she managed to stop herself just in time. She tried to calm her heart which was beating fast against her chest.

"Hello?! Who are you?!" Sophie cried out, trying hard not to sound too scared.

The figure who stepped out of the darkness was an old woman. Sophie relaxed and took a better look at the woman standing in front of her. The old woman was not wearing any shoes and her eyes darted wearily from Sophie to the scones in her hand. The clothes she was wearing looked old and covered in dirt. Sophie smiled at her trying to reassure her and the woman tentatively crept closer to the warm fire.

"I am Sophie. What is your name?" Sophie asked, but the woman merely replied with an unintelligible grunt.

_She must be simple_. Sophie assumed and she beckoned the woman closer and handed her one of her scones. The old woman grinned at Sophie showing the few teeth she had left as she wolfed down the little cake. Her wrinkled eyes lit up in pleasure as Sophie handed over her own scone, and she munched that down as well. When the woman had finished eating she sat up straighter and seemed to look at Sophie properly for the first time. She remained with her eyes fixed on Sophie for quite some time, and Sophie felt a bit exposed and vulnerable. Why was this woman staring at her like that?

A few more minutes passed like this before the woman's eyes grew wide and she gave Sophie the biggest grin ever (although it was not the prettiest). The old woman stood up slowly so she stood staring down at Sophie, and she removed what looked like a glass pendant from around her neck. Sophie sat still watching curiously as the old woman mumbled some more sounds as she placed the necklace around Sophie's own neck. Up close, Sophie could see that it was not a pendant at all but a small phial attached to a chain. Inside the phial there was a single drop of a golden colored liquid. Against the light of the fire it seemed to sparkle like real gold. the woman bent down so she was eye level to Sophie. The placed her palm gently on Sophie's cheeks before opening her mouth to speak.

"Use it well," she whispered and Sophie was surprised she could speak in perfect sense.

Then what was all that grunting and mumbling nonsensical sounds? And why did the woman gift her with this phial?

But before Sophie could ask any of her questions the woman moved over to the other side of the campfire and lay down on the ground. Not too long after, she was snoring away contentedly. Sophie didn't have the heart to wake the old woman, so she sighed and carefully placed her cloak around the woman's sleeping body. Sophie walked back over to where she was sitting before and rolled out her bedroll to lie down. As she stared up into the sky Sophie wondered who the old woman was and the meaning of the phial which was still around her neck. And Sophie also thought of Jesse - was he one of those stars watching over her? She was still wondering when sleep took over and she soon fell into a weary sleep.

oOoOoOoOoOo

When Sophie woke up the next morning she found that the woman had disappeared. Sophie sat up and placed her glasses back on to see more clearly. There was no trace of her and if it wasn't for the phial around her neck, Sophie would have thought that the events that took place last night was nothing but a dream. However there wasn't any time for Sophie to wonder about the old woman because she could hear the sound of hooves and loud chattering not very far away from her. Sophie could make out the unmistakable silhouette of Gandalf's hat and she sighed in relief. He was riding his horse next to a smaller pony carrying a dwarf. Following closely behind them were a group of other dwarves riding on ponies as well - Sophie counted fourteen dwarves in total. She slipped onto her own pony and rode out to greet her old wizard friend and the company of dwarves.

When Sophie got closer she could see that there were indeed not fourteen dwarfs, but thirteen and a hobbit. He didn't look too happy sitting on his pony. The dwarf riding next to Gandalf tensed as he saw Sophie ride towards them, and she didn't miss the way his hand went to his sword before Gandalf intercepted.

"Ah, Sophie dear! So I see you have decided to join our quest?" Gandalf exclaimed pleasantly as Sophie stopped in front of the company.

All the dwarves (and the hobbit) looked up at the wizard in surprise, especially the dwarf who had been riding next to Gandalf. Sophie could see he had thick black hair with a few grey strands, and piercing blue eyes. They bore into Sophie with suspicion and disapproval.

"'_Join us_', Gandalf? We do not even know who she is," the dwarf said in a low tone.

_Hold on_. Sophie thought to herself. _Did Gandalf not tell them she would be joining their company?_

"I know Sophie Burns and I can vouch that she can be trusted," Gandalf replied hastily, giving the dwarf a hard stare before turning to face Sophie again.

"Sophie, I would like you to meet the leader of our company, Thorin Oakenshield."

Sophie had heard of the name before from the gossiping villagers. _The King who would have ruled under the mountain had the dragon not attacked._ So THIS was the quest Gandalf had invited her to join.

"Hello," Sophie said nervously to the dwarf King who was still glaring at Sophie with suspicion.

Thorin didn't bother to acknowledge her greeting and despite everything Sophie felt annoyance inside. She understood his reluctance to trust her and have her join their quest but his manners towards her was downright rude.

"Gandalf, I cannot agree to this. She is a woman and she will only slow us down, I will not allow it." Thorin said brusquely with an air of authority.

"Sophie is not just a woman, Thorin. She is a witch, which is always a great advantage to us to have two magic users. And Sophie has other qualities that I know will benefit you and your company on this quest." Gandalf frowned as Thorin shook his head.

"It does not matter that she is witch. I doubt that she can wield any weapon and she will only be a distraction to my men."

Distraction? Is that how low his opinion was of her? His last statement made Sophie snort quietly, although she knew Thorin had heard and he whipped around to face her with his cold blue eyes.

"We do not need you in our company, Ms Burns! You will be nothing more but a burden to us!" He said harshly and Sophie flinched at his words.

But Sophie soon felt anger flaring up inside her. His judgement of her was so low yet he had not even met her for more than five minutes. The next words were out of Sophie's mouth before she could stop them.

"But Thorin, how can you judge a person so harshly without even giving them a chance to prove their merits?"

Thorin's eyes flashed in anger and he directed his pony closer towards Sophie so that he was no more than a few inches away from her.

"And why should I give you that chance? Ms Burns, why are you even wishing to join my company on OUR quest?" He asked in a dangerously low voice.

Thorin's last question threw Sophie off guard. Why did she agree to join the adventure? It was dangerous and there was nothing in it for her. Sophie had thought initially that it was because she wanted to find out why she had been sent to Erebor, but she now realized that it was more than that. There was something about seeing these group of dwarves trying to reclaim their home by slaying a dragon that clenched Sophie's heart. She knew the feeling of being lost and homeless. When Sophie met the blue eyes with her own grey ones she replied in a firm voice,

"Well, you're going to need all the help you need to take on a dragon. If you let me I will try my best to help you reclaim your home, but you have to accept me first."

It was silent after Sophie had finished speaking and all the dwarves (including Gandalf and the hobbit) turned their eyes towards their leader. Thorin seemed to think over Sophie's last words with a frown. However in the end he sighed and stared down at her with a cold glare.

"Very well. You will join my company and I, Ms Burns. However I will not be responsible for your fate whatsoever. And do not think that I trust you anymore than I did before."

With that, he kicked his pony and ordered his company to move on.

**ooOoOoOoOoOoOoOoo**

**Thank you Gringle Kirby for pointing out my mistake in giving Sophie's pony two different names! **


	6. Hostility and suspicion

Chapter Six

The company which now included the young witch continued on their long quest to reclaim Erebor. Thorin watched the small woman from the corner of his eyes as he urged his pony to trot faster to match the pace of Gandalf's larger horse. Her name, what was it again...Sophie? _Peculiar name_, Thorin thought. He had never heard of such a name before on Middle Earth let alone heard of a witch as young as she was. Frankly, Thorin didn't know what to make of their newest member. She looked rather ridiculous with her oversized glasses (Thorin had only ever seen Balin wear spectacles before and he was quite an aged dwarf), and her long curly, brown hair which stuck out slightly. Thorin decided Sophie was quite a plain looking creature - there wasn't anything very attractive about her, although she did have a kind face. She was slightly shorter than he was, and by dwarf standards rather on the thin side. It didn't appear as though Sophie did much fighting in which case it was definitely an unwise decision on his behalf in allowing her to join their quest. He had only agreed because of Gandalf's insistence and Sophie's last statement about giving her a chance to prove her worth - he could not understand why her words bothered him so much. There was no doubt in Thorin's mind that this young _woman_ was going to be nothing but trouble and he let out a sigh of annoyance underneath his breath.

Sophie could feel Thorin's eyes watching her with suspicion but she tried hard to ignore it. Instead Sophie distracted herself by listening to the constant bantering of Kili and Fili who had both directed their ponies on either sides of Sophie's pony with mischievous grins on their (handsome - Sophie could feel herself blushing) faces as soon as Thorin had rode away. Sophie had learnt quite a lot from the two brothers and their humorous stories helped pass the time, especially when they were doing nothing but riding on their ponies for the entire day.

"So, Sophie" Kili began, flashing a smile at Sophie.

"You're quite a shy little one aren't you? Gandalf tells us you're a witch, aye?"

"Yes, I am" Sophie answered the dark haired brother as she tried to make herself more comfortable on Daisy.

"We've never heard of a witch in Middle Earth before," Fili said next to her, and Sophie could see the two brothers exchange cheeky little winks between each other. _What were those brothers up to?_

"Yeah!" Kili said slyly, getting the hint from his blonde haired brother.

"There are not many witches here, _especially_ young and cute ones like you."

Sophie could feel herself blushing a deep red (the same colour as the strange scarlet-stained root Radagast had once dug out of their herb garden), and she tried to look anywhere but at the two younger dwarfs who were now beside themselves laughing. It looked like they were going to have a lot of fun teasing her now. It was only after Thorin had turned around and growled at his nephews' silliness that Kili and Fili both stopped laughing and shrugged sheepishly. Sophie on the other hand was grateful for Thorin's interference but when she tried to see his face to thank him, he had already turned his head around again.

"Lads, leave the young lady alone," The dwarf with the white beard (Balin, Sophie thought the name was) told off the two brothers fondly.

"We were just being friendly" Kili muttered with a frown.

And then he said in an even lower voice, which Sophie was sure only she and Fili could hear,

"Unlike uncle who's too shy to even make eye contact."

Sophie was pretty sure that Thorin's hostility towards her was more annoyance than shyness, but she decided to keep her mouth shut. Balin swiftly shooed the two brothers away (which Sophie was grateful for - their teasing was enough for today!) and he gave Sophie a kind smile.

"Lass, have you done much fighting?"

"Oh, no! I've never killed anything before in my life," Sophie exclaimed with a shudder.

Having lived with Radagast since she was a child, Sophie had learnt how to grow and care for nature but never to kill anything that lived and breathed. But then again, she had also never come across an orc or a goblin before in the Green Woods. Balin seemed to be able to read her last thought and he nodded.

"I cannot say this quest will be a safe one, lass. You're going to need to learn how to fight," he said gravely.

"Well, I do know how to stun attackers and disarm them with my wand..." Sophie began but she was stopped by another voice that had joined the conversation.

"But what if you have your wand taken off you? Or you are standing too close to your enemies to put a spell on them?" Bofur asked her, and Sophie realized that he did have a good point there.

Balin seemed to think for a moment before saying,

"We have a spare axe somewhere amongst our supplies - you can use that, Sophie. But you're going to need to learn how to fight (for a weapon as lethal as an axe can be just as dangerous to its user if they do not know how to wield it). Dwalin can teach you, he's an excellent fighter - taught Thorin how to fight as well. You'll be in good hands."

Sophie looked over behind her at the large, menacing looking dwarf called Dwalin who was going to be her axe-fighting teacher. She was slightly taken aback by his large muscles and serious expression - he didn't look as though he was going to be an easy-going dwarf.

Suddenly Sophie felt small droplets fall onto her glasses, making it difficult for her to see ahead clearly. The droplets soon developed into a downpour, and the dwarves moaned in annoyance at their wet surrounding. Sophie on the other hand welcomed to cool feeling of the rain that fell on her face and she bent her head back to absorb more of the fresh water. The company continued their journey in the rain until Thorin announced they would stop for the night at a burnt out area in the heart of the forest. The place was unwelcoming and the smell of smoke still lingered in the air.

"I knew the farmer who lived here," Gandalf spoke quietly, almost to himself.

"Thorin, I suggest we move on."

The dwarf King and the wizard moved off to the edge of the campsite away from Sophie and the rest of the company. They could not hear anything but Sophie could see that Gandalf was not very happy with whatever Thorin had said.

"Where...where are you going?" The hobbit called Bilbo asked Gandalf as the old wizard stormed past them, muttering curses underneath his breath.

"I've had enough with dwarves for quite a while...Need to talk with someone who's got any sense around here!"

And with that Gandalf the Grey was gone, disappearing amongst the trees.

oOoOoOoOoOoOo

The absence of Gandalf unnerved Sophie and she could see that the hobbit felt the same way. Sophie sighed and moved over to where Bilbo was sitting, his face was tense with anxiety and fear.

"Hey, it's Bilbo right?" Sophie asked, for once not being in the position of needing to be reassured.

The hobbit looked over at her and managed to give her a polite smile. Sophie sat down next to him and passed over one of her baked cookies which she had packed for the journey. She felt pride tingle inside herself as she saw Bilbo's face relax and happily succumb to the sweetness and buttery texture of the biscuit.

"That taste reminded me of the Shire, thank you Ms Burns." Bilbo said wistfully as he dusted the last crumbs off his vest.

"Please, call me Sophie. I miss the old tree house too, and Radagast...It seems we have much in common, Bilbo."

"Yes I guess you're right - we are similar. I mean, we're even hated by the same dwarf," Bilbo said rolling his eyes at Thorin who was sitting by himself against a rock.

Despite everything Sophie couldn't stop a giggle bubbling out her mouth and she shook her head at the funny side of their situation. She could see Bilbo was also trying - and failing - to stifle a laugh as well.

"Well, I'm going to go see how that soup is coming along...I'm starving!" The hobbit said and he walked off with a new bounce to his step. Sophie smiled to herself, glad to see that Billbo had regained some of his spirit.

"What are you playing at?" A deep growl from right behind her surprised Sophie and she spun around to see the dwarf King staring down at her.

Sophie could see nothing but hostility in those icy blue eyes. His penetrating gaze never left her face. But she wasn't going to let Thorin walk all over her. So Sophie stood up slowly and cleared her throat.

"Look, I know you can't stand me. You made that pretty clear before. But I just can't understand why. I have done nothing to anger you..."

"You think you are faultless?" Thorin sneered at her, and Sophie could feel her confidence leaving her.

"You know nothing about the world and what this journey means to me and my people! All your life you have lived cacooned in the safety of your own home - you wouldn't understand what it means to have no home! You and that hobbit think this is nothing more than a nice little trip? You're wrong. And I made a mistake to even accept you into our company...you do not belong here with us."

"No, you're wrong," Sophie said, a new wave of anger fueling her strength to stand up again.

"You are wrong about me. Thorin, you know NOTHING of my life and who I am. I have seen more evil than you think...And I know Bilbo has more qualities in him than you acknowledge that he has."

"It does not matter. I still stand by my words when I say that I had made a wrong decision in trusting you and accepting you on OUR quest. I refuse to allow you to continue burdening us on our journey with your presence."

Thorin regretted what he said as soon as the words had escaped from his lips. He was angry at Gandalf and frustrated that they had not made much progress since yesterday, and he wasn't thinking straight. Thorin knew Sophie had done nothing wrong and he was only picking faults with her to release his own anger. He could see that the young witch was now very upset and she had her head bent low, as if she was trying not to cry. It was only after he had stopped speaking that Thorin realized it had grown very quiet around him. All the dwarves were staring at them and Thorin knew that his men had heard every word that had been exchanged between them. Thorin knew he should apologize but his pride as King and his own stubbornness prevented him from reaching out and making amends with Sophie. The quietness was soon interrupted by Fili and Kili's cries from far away.

"Uncle, something has happened," Fili said urgently.

"What is it?" Thorin asked, grateful for the distraction.

"It's Bilbo...He's been captured by three mountain trolls!"

The company immediately picked up their weapons and began to run off to Bilbo's aid. Sophie also made to follow them but was stopped by Thorin.

"No, you are not to follow us. Stay where you are!" The dwarf King told Sophie with a hard stare before breaking out into a sprint to lead the attack.

Sophie was soon left alone at the campsite feeling like something she had always feared she would be...nothing more than a burden.


	7. How to outsmart trolls

Chapter Seven

Sophie remained in her seated position for what seemed like ages. What was taking them so long? She was desperate to see what was going on but whenever Sophie made to stand up Thorin's words rang in her head, bringing on fresh new waves of humiliation and self-doubt.

"_I refuse to allow you to continue burdening us_"

That was what the dwarf king had told Sophie, and that was what she was to the company - a burden. Maybe Gandalf had been wrong to think she could be of any help to the quest. At first Sophie had actually believed she could be useful with her magical abilities and everything, but now she wasn't so sure.

"_Maybe it is wiser to head back to the Green Woods like Thorin said_," a voice in Sophie's mind whispered, but she pushed it away.

Sophie couldn't afford to think like that. No. She was going to stay. She made a promise to help, and that was what Sophie was going to do - regardless of whether the leader of the company saw any use in her or not. With new determination Sophie stood up and pulled herself together. Thorin's words still stung, but she didn't stop walking deeper into the woods to see what trouble the company had gotten themselves into with the trolls.

After a few more minutes of walking, Sophie could hear loud voices not very far away from where she was. They didn't sound like any of the company members, and the voices seemed to be arguing with each other about something. When Sophie crept closer she could see not one but THREE mountain trolls talking loudly over a foul smelling pot of goo (Sophie could smell the stench of their cooking even from behind the bushes where she was hiding). Sophie could see that behind the three trolls were Thorin and the other dwarves including Bilbo. Some of the dwarves were tied to large skewers which the trolls had placed over the fire. _So much as for not needing her help_. Sophie knew that if she wasn't quick the entire company was going to get eaten before her eyes. But what could she do? Her magic was not powerful enough to knock out very large beasts in Middle Earth, and even if she did manage to succeed in stunning one of the trolls she would still be left with two more angry trolls. Could she run them through with her axe? No, of course not - the idea was discarded as soon as it entered Sophie's mind. Trolls had skin tougher than leather. She would be crushed before she even managed to penetrate through a fraction of their skin. It was no use - Sophie couldn't think of any realistic plan.

Then an idea struck her. Sophie could remember Radagast telling her a long time ago that trolls were weak against daylight and so the only way to save oneself from a hungry troll was to distract them until dawn approached. So all Sophie had to do was find a way to keep the company from being eaten for a couple of hours until the first crack of dawn. The first thing she would need to do is call for aid to Gandalf. Sophie crept closer to the pile of sacks containing the dwarves as quietly as she could. A few of the company members including Thorin and Bilbo noticed her presence, and appeared to be (Bilbo especially!) glad to see her. However Thorin still regarded her with suspicion and his frown deepened when he saw Sophie pull her wand out. Sophie ignored the looks she received from the dwarves and muttered under her breath,

"Expecto Patronum!"

A bright-lighted eagle flew up into the air before hovering in front of Sophie who was crouching to avoid being seen by the trolls. Luckily the trolls were so engrossed in their 'soup' and had their backs turned to her.

"Send a message to Gandalf that the company is in danger and that the patronus will lead him to the site," Sophie whispered and the eagle instantly took flight high into the dark sky.

Now for the trolls. It was obvious that trying to attack three fully grown male trolls with nothing but an axe and a wand was a suicide mission. But perhaps the company could be saved if they were able to _outsmart_ the beasts. Trolls were after all halfwits. Sophie crawled even closer so that she was now very close to the company members.

"Hey, I have a plan but I need your help. Bilbo, I need you to form a distraction to occupy the trolls while I climb up a tree," Sophie whispered to the frightened hobbit.

Before Bilbo could ask any questions Sophie ducked into some bushes again and began climbing up the nearest tree. She almost lost her footing a few times but she soon got herself into the rhythm. In the distance Sophie could hear Bilbo trying to convince the trolls on how to cook dwarves, and she felt proud of her hobbit friend. There really was more to him than what the others regarded him as. Sophie continued to climb until she felt she was high enough above the ground and well hidden behind all the branches.

"First you must skin the dwarves!" Sophie could hear Bilbo yell out, and this was quickly followed by a chorus of protests and curses from the dwarves (who could not understand why the little hobbit was encouraging the trolls to eat them).

Sophie took a deep breath before pulling her wand out again and she gently brought its tip to her throat. When she opened her mouth to speak her voice boomed in a deep tone so that it almost sounded troll-like.

"And who will bring out the knife? Which of you halfwits know how to skin a dwarf?" Sophie spoke in a low voice.

"Stop mutterin' to yer'self, William!" The largest troll yelled, hitting the smaller troll with the back of his spoon.

"It ain't me ye oversized idiot! It was Bert!"

"Shut up the both of ye!"

The trolls all seemed utterly confused and were now arguing with each other, waving their arms around threateningly. Sophie couldn't believe it, her plan was working! The trolls were now punching and kicking one another, grunting and swearing.

"Dawn will take you all!"

Sophie was relieved to see the familiar grey hooded figure standing above a large stone boulder. Gandalf brought his staff down and the boulder cracked impressively in half, exposing the trolls to the bright morning light. The trolls screamed and tried to run but it was too late. They all turned to stone, never to move again. All the dwarves began to cheer and laugh, and Sophie quickly climbed back down the tree to help untie them from the sacks.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Thorin was glad to be out of the sack that he had been trapped in for the past few hours. He had almost been sure that they were going to be eaten by those foul creatures, but Gandalf had arrived just in the nick of time. All thanks to the young witch. The spell Sophie had casted - the large eagle shaped light - had found Gandalf. Thorin now felt foolish for dismissing Sophie's powers as useless before when in fact, it had saved him and his mens' lives.

"Well if it wasn't for our burglar and witch, you would have all been turned into troll soup," the Grey wizard said breezily looking at Thorin with a twinkle in his eyes.

"I think you owe someone an apology. Thorin, do not be so quick to judge people's abilities - you may find yourself surprised at how wrong you were."

Thorin felt that the wizard was enjoying the situation a bit too much. But anyhow Gandalf was right - he DID owe Sophie an apology, especially when she had risked her own life to save theirs. He had verbally attacked her without warning and it was a very rude thing to do. Thorin trudged over to where Sophie was standing next to the little hobbit, who was still slightly shaking. He could see her pat Bilbo's back and whisper something so that the hobbit smiled in both relief and pride. Thorin coughed to get the young witch's attention. The grey eyes behind her large glasses bore into his own deep blue ones as Thorin tried to think of what to say.

"You didn't leave," he said at last.

Sophie nodded and stared at him without smiling,

"I said I will stay and help, didn't I?"

"I would like to apologize for my rude comments earlier," Thorin said, his fingers fidgeting behind his back (WHY was he fidgeting?!).

"And also...thank you, Sophie, for saving the lives of my men and myself."

Sophie seemed surprised for a second but she simply nodded at the dwarf King and lightly turned her heel towards where the rest of the company was standing.


	8. Confessions by the fire

Chapter Eight

Sophie's 'heroic' actions seemed to have caused a change in the way the dwarves regarded and treated her. Thorin especially had shown the biggest change. Only yesterday he had been cold and hostile towards her. But now he appeared to almost accept her into his company and he had even apologized to her. All these changes in attitudes confused Sophie. She did not regard her actions in anyway more braver than the actions of the rest of the thirteen members of the company and their leader who were risking their lives to recalim their home for their people. But she was still greatful for the dwarves' new trust and acceptance of her to join their quest.

The troll's cave gave off a foul stench and Sophie had to hold her breath in order to stop herself from passing out. She could see that Bilbo and the other dwarves were also trying hard not to breathe in too deeply. The cave was full various weapons and chests full of treasures. Sophie watched amusedly at Oin and Gloin who were secretively burying a chest full of gold.

"It's a long term deposit!" Gloin said defensively when he saw the young witch's raised eyebrows.

Sophie, unable to stand the smell any longer came out of the cave. She breathed in the fresh air and tried to clear her head a bit. She could see Ori standing not very far away from her. When Sophie got closer she could see that Ori was clasping his hand which was bright pink around the skin area. He must have burnt it when the trolls had him over the fire.

"Here, try putting this on the burn," Sophie said as she pulled out a small jar of brown colored ointment from her little pouch.

Ori sighed as the coolness of the medicine spread over his wound.

"Thank you Sophie," the young dwarf said.

"I would have asked Oin to treat me but.." his voice trailed off as he nodded towards the old dwarf who was still busy hiding away his new found treasure.

A small tap on Sophie's back caused the young witch to turn around to face Dwalin. In his hands was a sword - it looked like an elvish blade but Sophie couldn't tell for sure.

"This blade is very light so you will find it much easier to wield than the dwarf-made axe," Dwalin said gruffly as Sophie looked at him questioningly.

Although initially surprised Sophie was touched that this tough and proud dwarf had gone out of his way to help her.

"Thank you, Mister Dwalin" she answered, humbly accepting the gift, and Dwalin nodded.

"We will begin training tomorrow so familiarize yourself with your new sword," and with that, he walked off.

Sophie looked down at her new sword again (which indeed was lighter than her axe) to study it more carefully. It was a beautiful blade with elven inscriptions carved into the hilt. It was definitely a better option than the heavy axe she had to carry around before.

"Dwalin feels responsible for your safety," Sophie heard a gentle voice say to her from behind.

Balin was standing a few meters away from her, one arm leaning against the tree. Sophie couldn't tell how long he had been standing there. The old dwarf was stroking his long white beard all the while smiling at Sophie's confused expression.

"Why would he feel responsible for me?"

"You are his new student, that is why. Dwarves take all relationships very seriously and the bond between a teacher and his student is considered as strong as the bond between family members. I believe the old warrior feels you have proven yourself worthy of being taught by him which is a rather rare thing...the only other dwarf who Dwalin accepted as his student was Thorin Oakenshield - our King."

Sophie didn't know what to make of this. In one way she was relieved that Dwalin had accepted her but in another aspect she felt kind of embarrassed and quite flattered that the dwarf warrior regarded her in such a good light. Sophie hoped she would not disappoint him. But there was hardly any time for Sophie to ask Balin further questions because Thorin and the rest of the company had exited from the troll cave and were now getting ready to move on. Thankfully the weather was fine and not too cold nor too hot. The company members (despite last night's ordeal) were in good spirits and although they had no ponies, they each picked up their load and began walking merrily, all the while exchanging songs with one another.

oOoOoOoOoOoOo

_It is the forest again. Sophie is running as fast as she can, the branches of the tall trees scratching the sides of her face like claws. Someone is tugging her along by the arm and at first she thinks it is Jesse. But when the person turns around to look at her, he's the death eater. His face is twisted into an ugly grin, the corners of his mouth are so abnormally stretched right up to his ears that it gives his entire visage a frightening appearance. Horrified, Sophie tries to pull away but the death eater has a much too strong grip on her arm. Not far from them Sophie can see Jesse fighting off two other death eaters. As soon as he sees her, Jesse starts running to her aid. But the death eater is too quick. The green jet of light leaves the death eater's wand and flies towards Jesse's unsuspecting back. Sophie tries to warn her brother but when she opens her mouth to scream no sound comes out of her voice. The last thing she sees before darkness takes over her is Jesse's bright turquoise eyes staring into her own. _

Sophie woke up with a start, her face and neck area drenched with cold sweat. It was always the same nightmare. She had been dreaming it for years now, ever since that treacherous night nine years ago. She sat up from her bedroll and looked around at Bilbo and the dwarves who were blissfully asleep. Kili and Fili were lying next to her (they must have moved sometime during the night) and were sleeping peacefully. Sophie was glad nobody was awake to see the state she was in. She had already been marked as a burden once, she did not want to stir any more trouble.

Or at least, Sophie THOUGHT everyone was sleeping.

"What plagues your mind?" A deep voice quietly asked her from behind.

Sophie sighed to herself. Well of course somebody would be awake to keep watch for the night. Sophie didn't reply, hoping that the owner of the voice would think she was getting ready to go back to sleep. But she knew he wouldn't be that easily deceived. Thorin walked over to where Sophie was sitting by the fire with her knees drawn up right up to her chest, and knelt down beside her.

"Are you alright?" He asked again staring at her shivering frame.

Sophie stared at the dwarf prince in surprise. Did he just voluntarily approach her, not to pick a fight with her, but out of concern? Sophie decided that his actions constituted to some form of apology on his behalf for what happened last night before the troll incident. Well, if that was the case then she would accept it gratefully.

"I'm fine" Sophie replied with a little swift of her hand, trying to pretend it was nothing.

"It's just this dream I've been having. Really, it's no big deal."

Thorin's face indicated that he was in no way fooled by her fake nonchalance.

"I do not believe it is nothing" Thorin said, his blue eyes carefully studying her face.

Sophie could see no scornfulness in them like she was some weak person who could not stand up to her fears. His eyes contained concern and understanding, although he made sure to keep the rest of his face neutral. The pair stared into the fire together for a while, watching the flames dance in the air. The only sound that could be heard was Bombur's deep snoring. It was Thorin who broke the silence.

"That spell you casted before, when you were calling Gandalf to save us from the trolls. Does it have anything to do with your past?"

"Yes it does," Sophie answered, amazed at how he had figured out the essence of casting a Patronus charm.

"How did you know?" She asked the Dwarf King with wide eyes and Thorin shrugged.

"At that moment when you cast the spell you looked so at peace, it was just a guess."

Sophie pulled her wand out and quietly murmured,

"Expecto Patronum".

A beautiful white eagle escaped from the tip of her wand and soared into the air.

"A Patronus takes on the form of the animal that represents the most happiest memory of the witch or wizard who cast it," she explained, looking at Thorin who was listening quietly before continuing.

"See, I didn't always live in Middle Earth. Before Radagast took me in I used to live in a different world where there were many more witches and wizards like me. At the wizardry school I used to go to the students would all be divided into different teams which we called houses. My older brother Jesse's one was Ravenclaw, for the wise and intelligent. The Ravenclaw house was symbolised by an eagle. And Jesse really was just that - smart, brave...I really loved him."

"Which house were you in?" Thorin asked her with a kind face.

"I was in Hufflepuff. There were two more houses – Gryffindor and Slytherin."

"It…my nightmare always involves my brother. It takes place on the night I arrived to Middle Earth" Sophie said quietly, her voice was no more than a whisper.

She had no idea why she was confining this to the dwarf king who had made it clear earlier that he had no wish to be burdened by her own troubles (and Sophie also knew he did not need any more burdens on top of his own).

"The exact events vary slightly but the ending is always the same."

"By the ending do you mean your brother's death?" Thorin asked her gently and Sophie nodded.

"Before I was sent to Middle Earth I used to live with my brother Jesse. It was just him and me because we had lost both of our parents. At that time, our world was surrounded by horrible evil due to the return of a powerful wizard called Voldemort. Everybody feared him and he was known by the name you-know-who because people were afraid to even speak his name. He and his army believed that only pureblood wizards were worthy enough to live. Since our mother father were both humans my brother and I were hunted."

The next part Sophie struggled to say aloud.

"We were running away from another wizard who worked for Voldemort and Jesse….he..."

She couldn't say the word. It was after some time before Sophie opened her mouth to speak again.

"I shouldn't have…It was my fault. He was trying to protect me," she told Thorin in a shaky voice, tears spilling down her face.

"You're right, Thorin. I am nothing but a burden. To Jesse and now to your company. I'm sorry."

Thorin stared at the young witch who was crying, and he felt like beating himself for being so insensitive towards her before. Sophie had never been cocooned from the dangers of the world, he could see that now. If anything she had lived through one.

"You are not a burden, Sophie," he said in a low voice, and he meant what he said.

Even though she could not fight like the other dwarves, she could still protect herself adequately with her wand. Sophie also knew many types of herbs and medicines, more than Oin, which was always helpful in such a dangerous journey as the one they were in. Thorin could also see that Sophie was not only kind but loyal as well. She had proven her loyalty and strength last night. Thorin knew she could have run away when they were caught by trolls and be safe from danger, yet Sophie had stayed and helped them escape. Without her they would have all been troll soup.

"I was angry and I was not thinking properly. It was wrong of me to suggest that you were not a valued member of the company" he said, regretting what he had said to her before and for causing so much pain.

"And.." Thorin cleared his throat a bit, not sure as to how to form the words he wanted to say.

"Your brother died an honorable death, anyone can see that. It was not your fault he died. Do not let your grief overtake you."

He knew all too well the grief she was going through – his grandfather's death was all Thorin had to remember to understand her pain. His words seemed to give Sophie some comfort and she gave him a sad smile.

"Thank you," she whispered.

Neither Sophie nor Thorin said anything more but both knew that they had reached a new level of understanding and respect for each other. A faint outline of a friendship formed between the two people in front of the warm campfire that night. Both the young witch and dwarf King wondered silently with small hope that maybe this journey WILL turn out better than either one of them had anticipated.

* * *

**I cannot explain how appreciative I am for my readers! Just like to say thanks and that I will try to update the next chapter soon! :)**


	9. An unexpected meeting with Radagast

Chapter Nine

Sophie was awakened from her sleep by two hands which gently shook her. When she opened her eyes Sophie could see Dwalin staring down at her.

"You need to get up now, lass. It's time to begin our first sword training session," Dwalin said gruffly.

Sophie gave a yawn before sitting up and putting on her glasses. Her hair was tangled and she gave a quick comb through it with her fingers. The sun was just beginning to rise and most of the other dwarves were still asleep. Only Thorin and Gandalf were awake as well. Sophie couldn't remember when she had fallen asleep last night and she looked over at the dwarf King who gave her the slightest of nods. Thorin was sitting next to Gandalf with his back against the tree, and the two of them were silently smoking on their pipes. Sophie gave one last stretch to shake off the sleep before picking up her new sword and walking over to where Dwalin was standing with his own axe.

Thorin watched Sophie's small body move in accordance to Dwalin's directing. Her movements were awkward and stiff unlike her teacher's. It reminded Thorin of the time he first learnt how to use his sword many years ago. Thorin couldn't stop the smile forming on his face as he watched Sophie's eyebrows bunch up in concentration as she tried to follow Dwalin's steps, but he quickly stopped as soon as he realised what he was doing. Unfortunately Thorin wasn't quick enough and Gandalf chuckled quietly beside him.

"She's doing well, considering it's her first time wielding a blade," the wizard said breezily but his eyes continued to watch Thorin carefully.

Thorin shrugged and pretended he didn't care. Sophie was his friend (though he could never admit to anyone how delighted he was to have improved their relationship somewhat) and since she was now part of his company he had a responsibility to look after her, just like all his other men. But for some reason Thorin wasn't sure if he was trying to convince Gandalf or _himself_ that he was merely fond of the young witch and nothing more.

Sophie spent the entire morning being trained by Dwalin. Well, it was more of her trying to block Dwalin's deathly blows although the dwarf made sure that she was safe and no harm would be done. By this time most of the other dwarves had woken up (except Bombur of course!) and were watching the two of them, obviously amused. Fili and Kili especially were having the time of their lives in Sophie's opinion, never hesitating to throw in cheeky commentaries or advice. Sophie was just catching her breath when Dwalin's axe flung into the air out of nowhere towards her again before stopping centimetres from her neck. Was this not a training session but a real battle, Sophie was sure it would have meant certain death for her.

"Well, what is the use of holding a sword if you're not going to use it, lass?" The dwarf warrior said, giving Sophie a stern look.

"I wasn't ready, and you're going much too hard on me. It's only my first lesson you know," Sophie huffed childishly.

"Your enemies aren't going to care whether you're ready or not," Dwalin replied, unimpressed.

He walked off towards Bofur and Bilbo who were busy making breakfast, signalling that the lesson was over. Sophie could see Thorin at the exact same position he was when she first saw him, watching her with a strange expression. He nodded at Sophie again when he saw her watching. She shrugged and made to grab some breakfast as well when two strong arms from either side of her grabbed her. Sophie didn't have to see to know that it was Kili and Fili.

"If you need any extra help you can always ask us," Kili said playfully and Fili nodded with a wink.

"And we won't be so mean like Mister Dwalin over there, which is always an extra bonus."

"Thanks guys, but what I really need right now is breakfast," Sophie politely anwered with a laugh.

She was growing quite fond of the two brothers, and Sophie found that she didn't really mind their playful jokes and attitudes so much. In fact they helped keep the journey light and less frightening than what it actually was. Sophie had to keep reminding herself that at the end of this quest (if they ever make it that far) there would be a dragon needed to be dealt with.

The company had just finished packing and were just about to leave when they heard a sound coming towards them. Instantly everybody pulled out their weapons, even Bilbo held his tiny sword in front of him with a terrified expression. Sophie pulled out her wand and pointed it towards the sound. It was then that Sophie realised that the sound was actually a voice, and a familiar one too.

"Thieves! Fire! Murder!" Radagast yelled, stopping his little rabbit-pulled sleigh in front of the dumfounded company.

Sophie was overthrilled to see her old friend again and she ran to hug Radagast. Radagast's confused face momentarily cleared and he smiled as he wrapped her into a tight embrace.

"Radagast! It is so good to see you!"

"And so am I, my dear girl. But right now is not the time to chat (no matter how much I would love to hear how you are doing) - I have come to see Gandalf."

Gandalf and Radagast moved off away from the company and spoke in a low voice to each other - Sophie couldn't hear much except the words "evil" and "sickness". The other dwarves and Bilbo were sitting on the ground quietly resting, and Sophie chose a spot on a large log to sit down as well - the conversation between the two wiazrds did not look like it would finish quickly. She heard footsteps and saw Thorin walk towards her. He stopped in front Sophie and looked at the seat next to her before looking back at her face questioningly. Sophie smiled to herself - the dwarf King was asking her permission to sit down next to her. She nodded and Thorin lowered himself onto the other side of the log. Sophie was glad that they had become friends and were not treating each other with hostility anymore.

"You did well for your first sword training session," Thorin said and he frowned when Sophie snorted.

"Are you kidding?! I was absolutely horrible! But then again, I was never good in any sort of combat, not even with my wand - I guess that's why I don't enjoy it."

"So what do you enjoy doing?" The dwarf King asked with a chuckle, and Sophie thought for a while before giving her answer.

"I used to like potion brewing before I came to Middle Earth. Potions was the only class I was confident in at Hogwarts. I also enjoy baking cakes, cookies, pastries - you name it. But they're useless activities in regards to this quest," Sophie said with a sigh.

Thorin laughed (not unkindly) and Sophie was just about to return the gesture, but she stopped herself quickly. Why was she telling all this to Thorin? It was the same question that had lingered in Sophie's mind last night when she blurted out all her confessions to the dwarf King. Thorin probably didn't even care, yet why did she feel so comfortable confining her most personal information to him?

Thorin was just about to say something to Sophie when he heard a long, haunting howl. He quickly stood up and pulled out his sword, and he saw Sophie do the same.

"Was that a wolf? Are there wolves out here?" Bilbo asked in a scared voice.

But before anybody could answer an enormous warg sprung out from the bushes. It jumped onto Gloin ferociously but luckily Dwalin was quick to kill the beast first.

"You're being hunted, Thorin!" Gandalf yelled urgently, his own sword pulled out from its scabbard.

Sophie felt her insides turn. They were being hunted by orcs that were riding fast wargs, and they did not even have their ponies. It would only be a matter of time before the company would be caught.

"I'll hold them off, go!" Radagast said with an air of determination.

"These are wargs, you will be outrun," Gandalf said with a shake of his head, but Radagast only smirked.

"_These_ are Rhosgobel rabbits...I'd like to see them try."

Sophie barely had time to register what was going on before she felt Thorin's strong hand grip her arm and lead the company out of the forest into the open. Sophie could remember the last time she was chased by dangerous enemies who wanted to kill her - it was nine years ago in the dark forest, and they had managed to take away Jesse from her. Sophie prayed silently for things to play out differently this time.


	10. The chase to Rivendell

Chapter Ten

Sophie felt her chest was going to burst any second. If it wasn't for Thorin pulling her along, Sophie was sure that she would have fallen behind or been caught by one of the orcs. The company ran with Gandalf in the lead, hiding behind large boulders whenever the hunting party was a little too close to them. In the distance Sophie could hear Radagast pulling his sleigh and she feared for his safety just as much as their own.

The orcs seemed to have sensed that something was wrong and had slowed down their chase on Radagast, making it more difficult for the company to remain undiscovered.

"Ori, NO!" Thorin yelled as the youngest dwarf ran ahead into full view.

Thorin let go of Sophie's hand in order to pull Ori back to safety. The company was hiding behind a large boulder and Sophie could hear a dangerous snarl right above her head. An orc was standing on the boulder and his warg was going to sniff them out in any minute. Kili quickly turned around and shot the orc dead with his arrow before he could alert his fellow hunting pack. But it was too late - the orcs had seen them and were now riding on their ferocious wargs towards them.

"Run!" Yelled Gandalf urgently and Sophie ran as fast as she could with the rest of the company members.

The wargs were much too fast and soon the company was surrounded by the evil monsters. The orcs smirked at their vulnerability. Ori bravely shot his slingshot at an advancing warg but the orc merely laughed at his feeble attack.

"Hold your ground!" Thorin ordered and he pulled out his own sword which he had retrieved from the trolls' cave.

Sophie subconsciously edged closer to Ori who was now petrified. Sophie also felt she was going to pass out in fear but when she looked around she could see Bilbo not very far away. He also looked terrified but he was still holding his ground with his sword out, and for some reason that gave her courage. They were not going to go down with a fight. Sophie pulled out her own sword and she tried to remember the moves Dwalin had taught her before, but her fear made her forget all her steps. Desperately Sophie scanned the area for Gandalf. It was only then that she realised the grey wizard had disappeared.

"Where's Gandalf?" Sophie asked in a panicked voice.

"He's abandoned us!" Dwalin answered as he slayed a warg near him.

No! Sophie thought. They needed Gandalf - he was the only one who knew the way to safety. But Sophie didn't have time to wonder where Gandalf was - an orcish arrow flew towards her and Ori. Sophie's reflexes took over and without thinking she pulled her wand out from her cloak and yelled,

"Protego!"

A translucent shield formed around her and the youngest dwarf, and the arrow bounced off much to the orcs' surprise. Sophie knew that this shield charm was only temporary and that it would not be strong enough to hold off all the orcs' attacks. Already more orcs were advancing towards them, their wargs snarling angrily. Sophie could feel her courage leaving her again and she felt Ori shake in fear next to her - she HAD to hold her ground for the sake of her dwarf friend. Just then, the familiar grey cloaked figure appeared from behind a large boulder. Sophie had never been more relieved to see Gandalf.

"In here, you fools!" The grey wizard yelled at the company before disappearing behind the large rocks again.

Without further delay Sophie grabbed Ori's trembling hand and ran as fast as her legs could carry her towards the large boulder. This time, it was Sophie pulling Ori along with her - she was the protector. When they got closer Sophie could see a large, dark hole where Gandalf had slid into. Thorin was standing at the entrance, making sure the rest of the company was safe. The dwarf King looked relieved when he saw Sophie and he swiftly killed another warg with his blade before signaling her to slide down. Sophie and Ori both slid into the hole together, and they were greeted on the other side by their fellow company members. Before Sophie had time to adjust her eyes to the darkness she felt a hand pull her up from the ground - it was Nori. He gave her a slight nod of thanks, probably for looking after his brother.

The company continued walking through the tunnel until they reached an open clearing. The view that greeted them made Sophie speechless - it was absolutely beautiful. It was the most exquisite city with a waterfall and large trees surrounding the area. Sophie swiveled her eyes towards Bilbo and the younger dwarves who also stared at the elven city in awe. Kili in particular seemed extremely impressed as he stood and drank in the view with his eyes.

"...it's Rivendell..." Bilbo's voice trailed off and he looked as though he had a spell cast on him.

Sophie realized that the older dwarves such as Dwalin and Balin, and the company leader especially did not appear as impressed nor delighted that they had escaped from the orc pack in one piece and alive. In fact, Thorin's face seemed to tell Sophie that this was the last place on Middle Earth he wanted to be. Sophie remembered hearing a story about the rift between the dwarves and the elves from a local baker whom she used to visit often before joining the quest. He had told her that when the great dragon had taken over Erebor, Thorin had called to the elves for help but he received none. The dwarven city may have stood a chance if the elves had given the dwarves their help. Sophie couldn't blame Thorin for acting so mistrustful and reluctant to step into Rivendell. But they all needed protection, food, and other necessities, so avoiding the elves altogether would have been a foolish decision to make.

The bridge leading the company into Rivendell was built high above the river flowing below them. Although the bridge was wide it had no safety rails and Sophie tried hard not to think too much about the possibility of falling off.

"I guess the elves didn't think about the safety of their visitors a great deal when they built this city - exactly how are you supposed to cross this half-built bridge without having a panic attack or something?" Sophie couldn't help muttering, and she saw a small smile form on Thorin's otherwise dark expression.

Seeing the dwarf King smile (even if it was more of a smirk) lifted Sophie's spirits. She was glad she could help Thorin, even if it was in the most smallest way. He was her friend and that was what friends did for each other...Sophie hoped that was a good enough explanation for the happiness she had just felt when she had seen the dwarf King smile. Sophie was also genuinely glad when Thorin wordlessly walked beside her so that his presence helped to steady her shaky legs. She ignored Fili's light teasing about being scared of walking over a bridge and focused on not looking down.

A tall and wise looking elf rode in on his horse towards the company members. Sophie couldn't help admiring the gracefulness of his movements as he jumped off his horse to greet Gandalf.

"My Lord Elrond," Gandalf greeted the elf as he stepped forwards.

Lord Elrond embraced Gandalf and the two people shared a conversation of which Sophie could not understand, as it was spoken in elvish. When they had finished exchanging words with each other, Elrond looked over towards the company and Sophie felt Thorin tense beside her. However Sophie only felt comfort and kindness radiating out of the elf lord and she gave Elrond a polite smile without hesitation. Lord Elrond began to smile back at Sophie, but stopped and his eyes suddenly grew wide with surprise. He slowly lifted his hand and pointed at the small phial around the young witch's neck. Everyone else except Gandalf stared at Sophie and then at Elrond in turn with confusion. Sophie herself was quite confused and surprised at the elf lord's reaction. The grey wizard seemed quite amused at the situation and he nodded at Elrond's questioning face.

"Yes, I knew Sophie was in possession of this," Gandalf said calmly, and after a few moments Elrond nodded and regained his earlier grace.

"We will discuss further matters of the arrival of your company, Thorin Oakenshield," he said, staring at Sophie a moment longer than everyone else.

"But first, make yourselves more comfortable. You will be given rooms to wash yourselves while food is prepared."

The dwarves seemed quite content at the thought of real food being served, and they all followed the elves without question. Sophie was also exhausted and the prospect of a nice hot bath made her excited. She still had many questions to ask Elrond about the phial she was wearing though. Sophie fingered the object, remembering the night a few weeks ago when the old woman had gifted it to her. She had told Sophie to use it well. Sophie still had not figured out the value of this phial but she knew that she would find out soon enough.


	11. The secret of the phial

Chapter Eleven

Sophie was led by two beautiful elven maids into the garden of Elrond's palace where different foods were arranged as gracefully as their creators were. She had had a nice soothing bath and when she had come out of the bathroom, she had been both surprised and delighted to see the most stunning elvish dress laid down on her bed to wear. Never in her life had Sophie been given the privilege of wearing such a graceful garment, and for some reason she felt a bit shy to face the dwarves (well, one in particular) in such a feminie dress.

Thorin had to muster all the energy inside himself to maintain a neutral face in front of his men when he saw Sophie walk across to sit at the dining table. She was still the same person with her oversized glasses, petite body frame which seemed a bit too thin, and curly hair tied into a tight bun. Yet at the same time, a special element of beauty seemed to radiate out of Sophie, which Thorin was sure only the young witch was unaware of. Her skin looked so soft and smooth, and the dress she was wearing did well to bring out the soft curves of her body. The other dwarves also recognised Sophie's hidden beauty and began complimenting her.

"You see, uncle! We told you Sophie was a pretty little witch!" Fili and Kili chanted in unison, earning a threatening growl from Thorin.

Sophie blushed so that a pale shade of pink appeared on her cheeks and when she lifed her face, her eyes locked with Thorin's. The dwarf King patted the empty seat next to his and Sophie gratefully walked over and sat down in her chair. Thorin could feel the heat rush up his neck and he quickly gulped down his drink to divert his attention elsewhere.

Sophie could hardly contain her curiosity about the phial around her neck and looked expectantly at Lord Elrond who gave her a calm smile. It almost felt as though he knew what she was thinking, and the questions that were floating around in her head. Once everyone were seated and were as comfortable as they could get, Lord Elrond cleared his throat and began to speak.

"Many years ago during the time of the first elves, there roamed four spirits on Middle Earth - Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw, and Salazer Syltherin. The spirits possessed great power and wisdom, and existed to look over one place on Middle Earth - the falls of Animadur. It was a tall and mighty waterfall, and were regarded with both fear and respect. It was said that there was great magic held within the waters of Animadur, a magic so great that a single drop swallowed could bring a dying person back to the land of the living. The elves who, at first approached the falls of Animadur and its guardians with great care and respect, soon became greedy. They drank the magical water with evil thirst - it was not long before the elves began fighting amongst themselves as to who had ownership over the waterfall. Disgusted by the elves' greed, the four spirits combined their magical forces and hid away the falls of Animadur from all those on Middle Earth including the first elves. It has been told that the four spirits departed this world soon after and their souls were reincarnated into four great wizards in a place far away from Middle Earth."

Sophie was shocked to hear Elrond's story and she choked on the wine she was drinking, coughing in a very unlady-like manner. The spirits had travelled to the wizard world - _her_ world. She understood now that there was some unexplainable connection between the two dimensions, and this was why Gandalf had been able to collect various spell books and magical equipment for her to use.

"Well, that's elves for you," Gloin said rudely, and some of the dwarves sniggered.

The rest of the company such as Dwalin, Bilbo, Sophie, Balin, and Thorin at least had the decency to look ashamed at their member's rudeness. If Lord Elrond was insulted by the dwarf's comment, he did not show it. Sophie was impressed with the way he continued his story with unchanging calmness and grace, as though he had not even heard what Gloin had just said.

"However there was one spirit whose heart reached out to the first elves, despite their flaws. Helga Hufflepuff was known to be the kindest and most forgiving of the four spirits. Unbeknownst to the other three spirits, Hufflepuff secretly collected ten phials (much like the one around your neck) of the water from Animadur and passed it on to the few deserving elves. I am very surprised to learn that this phial has lasted so many generations. It appears as though fate has brought this powerful element to you, Sophie Burns."

At that point, the elf-lord gave Sophie a knowing look. The company seemed as equally baffled and confused as Sophie was.

"Why would the old woman give something so valuable and powerful to me? I mean, I had only just met her, and for less than ten minutes. Surely there must be some sort of mistake."

"Mistake, child? What mistake?" Gandalf (who had been quiet during most of the meal) asked Sophie kindly.

"Well, are you certain that this phial is _the_ phial? Maybe it is just a strange looking jewellery?"

Gandalf let out a deep chuckle and Lord Elrond shook his head.

"I am certain this phial is the phial containing the water of Animadur. Helga Hufflepuff stressed to the first elves who were given these phials to only pass these precious objects down to those who truly deserved it. Whoever gave this to you must have seen something inside you - a rare quality. Your heart, Sophie, is full of kindness and care for other free folk. Anyhow, the phial is yours now, and you alone have the right to use its magic...May you use it well, child."

Sophie was desperate to ask more questions but the elf lord stood up and walked away from the table, signaling the conversation to be over. Thorin, Gandalf, Balin and Bilbo also stood up from their chairs and followed Elrond. Bilbo gave Sophie a sympathetic smile before walking away.

"What was that all about?" Kili asked after taking another gulp of wine.

The rest of the remaining dwarves all stared at the young witch curiously. Sophie shrugged. She still didn't understand why the old woman had left such a valuable object in her possession, and moreover Sophie wasn't sure if she would be able to handle its power. But she knew in her heart that she would find out one day.

ooOoOoOoOoOoOoOoo

Thorin listened patiently with Balin and Gandalf as Elrond interpreted the moon-letters on the map leading to Erebor. He was reluctant at first, however he also knew he had no choice but to allow the elf to handle his grandfather's map. Bilbo stood a little distance away, and Thorin was slightly annoyed that the hobbit had been included by Gandalf in this meeting.

Elrond finished his reading and the members of the company, after paying their thanks, began to make their way back inside to where the other members were resting. Thorin also turned around to leave when he was stopped by the elf lord.

"Thorin, I need you to answer this question that I have been meaning to ask you," Elrond said with a serious expression.

Thorin raised his eyebrows slightly in weariness. Elrond seemed to sense the dwarf King's suspicion and he shook his head slightly.

"It is not about your quest that I have questions to ask, but about Sophie Burns."

"What about her?" Thorin asked a bit too aggressively - he suddenly felt a wave of protection for Sophie stir inside himself when Elrond mentioned the witch's name.

"Do you not understand the danger you put Sophie in if you allow her to assist you on you and your company's quest to reclaim Erebor? And I am not just talking about the danger of facing the dragon Smaug, nor goblins and orcs."

Thorin was slightly taken aback. Of course, he worried for Sophie's safety, especially since they had been attacked by trolls and chased by orcs not too long ago. But now that Elrond had brought up the subject, Thorin understood just how dangerous the quest truly was for her. As much as he despised the elf, Thorin could not ignore his concern. What would he do if Sophie got injured on this quest, or Mahal forbid, killed? Thorin would never be able to forgive himself if that ever happened. Elrond stared at Thorin's face and nodded in agreement.

"This quest will only mean danger for Sophie. Sophie doesn't realise it, but her being in possession of the phial of Animadur puts her safety at great risk - for there are many creatures on Middle Earth who would not hesitate to kill her in order to take hold of the object. Let her stay in Rivendell - my people will be able to protect her, for no orcs nor evil can ever cross our borders. If you truly care for her, Thorin, and I know you do - I saw the way you looked at her before - I trust that you would do what is in the best interest of her."

Thorin nodded and walked away without another word - he knew what he had to do. He could not stand this elven city but if it meant Sophie could be safe away from harm forever, then it was good enough for him. The thought of leaving Sophie behind and not being able to her again tore his heart. But Thorin also knew that allowing her to continue on this journey to satisfy his own desire to be near her was nothing more than a selfish act on his part. He had made many sacrifices throughout his life, but this was going to be his hardest one yet.

ooOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoo

Sophie sat at the edge of the balcony, her back leaning against the smooth stone column. She was casting a bird conjuring spell - their soft chirping made her think of Radagast and the tree house. A few metres away from where she was sitting, the dwarves were singing, laughing, and making jokes with each other. Ori was sitting next to Sophie, writing away in his little book - he had stuck close to her since their terrifying chase from the orcs and he seemed to depend on her more than he did on his brothers (of which Sophie had no problem with at all). Every once in a while the dwarf looked up and watched the birds that she had created, completely mesmerized. Sophie was just about to conjure another spell for Ori when she could see Thorin walk towards them and she sat up straighter. Unlike the other dwarves, he wasn't smiling, and he had a deep frown on his face. The dwarf King stopped in front of Sophie and looked down at her with his deep blue eyes.

"Sophie, would you mind if I had a word with you in private?" Thorin asked in a low voice, the frown still present on his face.

Sophie nodded and followed the dwarf King, away from the rest of the company. Thorin stopped walking when they were far away from everyone and alone in the corridor leading to their rooms. Sophie looked at Thorin expectantly, she wondered what he needed to tell her and how important it was that he needed to tell her in private. Thorin ran his fingers through his long black hair in frustration, and Sophie could see he was finding it difficult to say whatever he needed to tell her.

"Um...Thorin?" Sophie prompted gently.

"Are you alright?"

Thorin looked up at the sound of her voice and sighed - this was much harder than he thought. The dwarf King took a step closer until he could almost touch her if he lifted his arm, and Sophie's heart pounded at the closeness of his body to hers. But a sickly feeling was churning deep inside her and she felt scared when Thorin stared into her eyes almost pleadingly - as though he was begging for her to understand what he was about to tell her.

"Sophie, this quest is going to be dangerous...much too dangerous for you to continue on with us," he began.

"Yes, I know. But I thought we had this conversation before? I proved to you and your company that I am worthy enough to be accepted, remember?"

"Yes, yes you did, and I respect you for that Sophie," Thorin answered with a sad smile.

"Then...then what is the problem? Why are you trying to push me away again?" Sophie asked, breathing heavily.

"What we have faced with is nothing compared to what is yet ahead of us. You are a woman, and young...you do not have the experience nor strength that my men have. I'm sorry but I need you to stay behind in Rivendell," Thorin lied.

How could Thorin tell Sophie how he truly felt, how COULD he express how much he cared for the young witch? Even just watching her lifted his spirits and lessened the heavy feeling in his chest of the burden of being King. But he could not tell her that. Thorin was a King and he had important responsibilities - it was much too selfish to ask Sophie to share them with him. Thorin saw the tears roll down Sophie's cheek at his words, and he felt his heart sink. He made to comfort her, but then stopped. What could he do to make her feel better? - nothing. Not being able to look any longer Thorin turned around and began to walk away, his legs feeling heavy and his chest hurting.

"I...I thought you cared, Thorin..." Sophie said to his back in a strained voice.

Thorin didn't stop walking, and when he closed the door behind him Sophie covered her face with her hands and cried harder. She was a fool - how could she have thought that she and Thorin were friends? That they could ever be anything more than that? Sophie wanted to hit herself for opening her feelings that had been closed to the dwarf King and allowing herself to be hurt again. She understood now that everything had been a mistake - she should never have agreed to Gandalf's proposal and left Radagast's home. And now, there was nothing but pain left for her.

ooOoOoOoOoOoOoOoo

Unbeknownst to Thorin and Sophie, a certain grey wizard sat on a stool not far away from them, hidden from the moonlight which was the only source of light in the corridor where the three people were present. Gandalf remained unseen, with a sad expression on his face as he listened to the words exchanged between Sophie and Thorin - who would have known that fate would bring the two most unlikeliest people together? As the dwarf King walked towards the doorway, he passed Gandalf who sat very still. And unlike Sophie who was too far away to hear, Gandalf heard Thorin whisper his answer wistfully in the darkness where he thought nobody was around to hear;

"I do care, Sophie...more than I know I should...I...I care for you. Will I ever get the chance to tell you that?"

With that, the dwarf King quietly closed the door, leaving Gandalf and Sophie behind him.


	12. The words of Lady Galadriel

Chapter Twelve

Thorin's steps were heavy as he led his company out of the city of Rivendell. The company members had been both surprised and slightly disappointed when Sophie did not come out to join them - it seemed as though everyone had become quite fond of the young witch. Kili had tried to ask Thorin why they were leaving without Sophie, but Balin had elbowed the King's innocent nephew who quickly closed his mouth and continued walking.

"Sophie will understand one day your true feelings for her, and the real reason behind your decision," the old dwarf (who had always been a father figure to Thorin since the onset of madness of his own father) had said as he sympathetically patted Thorin on the shoulder.

The company was unusually quiet and somber, and there were no songs or jokes exchanged. Thorin was glad that his men had the tactfulness not too ask questions - it hurt too much to bring the memory up again to tell. As the company got further and further away from Rivendell, Thorin could only think of Sophie being further away from him. He tried to reason with himself that he had done the right thing and that Sophie was now safe...but his heart still yearned for the young witch, and the chance to see her again.

ooOoOoOoOoOoOoo

It was dawn when Sophie woke up to find herself crouched on the steps in the same room where Thorin had left her last night. Sophie couldn't remember exactly when she had fallen asleep, but it was a restless one and she had been crying prior to it. She figured the company must have left Rivendell without her - she had cried so hard last night that she felt childish for spilling tears again the next morning. However there was an empty feeling inside Sophie and she sat up slowly from her crouched position. The feeling inside her was painful - she just felt so hollow and cold. She thought she had been accepted by the company...that Thorin had accepted her and that a friendship had formed between them. How wrong she had been!

Sophie hastily wiped the tears and walked out into the corridor. Her initial idea had been to go back to her room, but she ended up walking around the palace grounds aimlessly - after all, she was not going to go anywhere anytime soon so what was the rush? Sophie began to walk up a long flight of stairs with absolutely no idea as to where she was walking. As she got closer to the top she could hear voices talking. One of the voices was Gandalf's (Sophie could recognize that fond tone anywhere), and the other voice speaking was a woman's which she had never heard of before. It was a melodic sounding voice, but one containing deep wisdom and knowledge. Curiosity got the better of the young witch and she continued to make her way up the steps, being careful not to tread too loudly. As she got closer Sophie could make out the words being exchanged. She dared not creep any closer and so she sat at the edge of the stairs and listened quietly.

"It is a dangerous quest Thorin Oakenshield has set him and his men on," the female voice said.

"It will be one where true courage and honor will be tested on each and every one of the company members."

"But it is one that must be completed," Gandalf answered.

The next question that the woman asked took Sophie by surprise.

"Mithrandir, why the witch and the Halfling?"

_Why indeed?_ Sophie thought to herself. It was a question that had lingered on her mind ever since the grey wizard had visited her at the tree house. The answer Gandalf had given Thorin had not satisfied Sophie, about having a witch in the company being a valuable addition. Sophie could sense (and wanted to know whether) there was something more to Gandalf's decision in asking her to join the company. There was a slight pause from Gandalf and Sophie waited for him to answer.

"Saruman believes it is only great power that can hold evil in check, but that is not what I have found. I found it is the small everyday deeds of ordinary folk that keep the darkness at bay. Small acts of kindness and love. Why Bilbo Baggins and Sophie? Perhaps because I am afraid, and they give me courage. Thorin is a proud dwarf, and he has the qualities to be a fine King. But I daresay he has his weaknesses, and he needs someone to lean on...somebody who will give him the strength he needs, and I am not talking about any physical strength, but an emotional one...The kind of strength where you know somebody cares and will be there for you. Sophie can give Thorin that, and I hope she will come to realize it herself one day."

Upon hearing the Grey wizard's words, Sophie leaned against the wall and closed her eyes. She could not imagine how she could ever help the company in the way in which Gandalf had described. She did not have much faith in herself.

"Sophie is a powerful witch. She is much more powerful and strong that she sees herself to be. But nobody can make her belive that except herself. This quest will give Sophie the chance to prove not only to those around her, but also to herself that she possesses great strength, and an immeasurable capacity to love and forgive," the woman's voice replied, making Sophie gasp to herself silently.

It almost felt as though the woman had read Sophie's thoughts exactly and was talking to _her_, not Gandalf. The woman's voice continued to speak,

"Do not be afraid, Mithrandir. You are not alone. If you ever need aid, I will come."

There was a long silence that followed, and Sophie sat still, not moving, trying to hear what was happening.

"Sophie, come out...I know you have been listening," Gandalf called out, making Sophie jump.

The young witch walked up the rest of the steps shamefully to where the Grey wizard was standing by himself. Gandalf smiled and put his hand on Sophie's shoulder.

"I'm sorry for eavesdropping..." Sophie started but was stopped by the old wizard.

"There is no need to embarrassed, Sophie (although I would have rather you to come up the rest of the stairs to greet your old man)," Gandalf said fondly and Sophie smiled in relief.

Sophie looked around the beautifully constructed open area, and was rather surprised to see that Gandalf was standing alone.

"Where is she? The woman you were talking with?" Sophie asked Gandalf curiously.

"Ah...That was Lady Galadriel, the guardian of Lothlorien, and the wisest (and fairest) elf lady on Middle Earth. She left not too long ago, for she needed to return to Lorien and her garden."

"So, I assume you have heard what Lady Galadriel told you? She knew you were listening," Gandalf said with a smile and Sophie nodded, amazed at how anyone could be so understanding.

Gandalf looked at Sophie for a few moments as if lost in thought before he said with a more serious expression,

"Sophie, I feel your time spent in this quest is not over yet - there is much more out there for you."

"It doesn't matter anymore, for I am no longer part of the company according to Thorin," Sophie replied sadly, but Gandalf shook his head slightly.

"Thorin only said those words because he believed this was the only way to keep you safe. You are still very much part of the company in everyone's hearts, including his. Thorin will be just as glad as any of the other dwarves to see you return to them. Sophie, I want you to go back to your room and pack your things while I will speak to Lord Elrond about your departure. Meet me at the edge of the Misty Mountains - I will be there with the company."

Sophie could do nothing but nod her head. She was thrilled at the idea of being able to see the company again, but she was also slightly nervous - What if Thorin gets angry that she disobeyed his order? What if Gandalf had been wrong about him? However the prospect of being able to continue assisting the dwarves on their quest was enough to lift her spirits and Sophie quickened her step back to her room to pack.

ooOoOoOoOoOoOoOoo

A few of hours later, Sophie was out of Rivendell - Gandalf had departed a couple of hours before her. Lord Elrond had initially been unhappy with the idea of Sophie leaving his palace where she would always be safe. However in the end he accepted her decision, and gave her and the quest his blessing. Sophie did not pack a lot since she had no pony to ride on (the horses at Rivendell were much too large for her to ride on!), and so she had to travel light. She had only packed some food, her medicine pouch, her wand and the sword Dwalin had given her. She had also changed back into her usual clothes, as the beautiful elvish dress would have been very unsuitable to wear when one was pursuing a journey in the wild. Sophie had considered packing the dress to take with her, but in the end she folded it neatly and placed it on the edge of her bed before leaving - the dress was much too delicate and extravagant for her to own.

The road to the forest near the Misty Mountains was quiet...too quiet for Sophie's liking. The birds were not singing, and even the gentle whistle of the breeze was not present. The silence which should have been peaceful unnerved Sophie and she felt vulnerable - like she was being watched by something _or someone_. Sophie had almost reached the destination where Gandalf had said that he would be waiting, when a long and ferocious howl of a warg travelled through the branches of the thick trees. The threatening sound made Sophie stop dead in her tracks, and she could feel her blood run cold. Wargs did not live free in the wild like other wolves - they were specifically bred by orcs to hunt...and kill. The howl could only mean one thing - there was a hunting orc-pack in close distance to her...and she knew exactly who they were searching for.

Sophie broke out into a sprint, and she ran through the trees as quickly as she could. Another warg howled and this time, it sounded even closer than the first one. Panic began to rise inside Sophie and she felt her stomach quench in fear for her friends. As she sped through the forest the young witch prayed to the four guardians for the safety of the company, and that her warning would not be too late.


	13. Azog's return

Chapter Thirteen

Thorin welcomed the fresh air that entered his lungs as he led his company out of the stench of Goblin town. The Goblin King (that poor excuse of royalty) had insinuated that Azog was still very much alive. Thorin did not believe a word of it, for he had personally severed the pale orc's arm off that day on the battlefield to reclaim Moria many years ago. How could any creature (no matter how foul like Azog was) survive the pain and infection of such a fatal wound? However despite his initial certainty, Thorin couldn't ignore the nagging feeling tugging inside him. What if, by some unexplainable work of fate, the pale orc had survived, just like the Goblin King had said he had? But Thorin quickly pushed the disturbing thought out of his mind - he would not allow himself to delve over such ridiculous thoughts...he had a quest to complete. Gandalf walked over to where Thorin was standing and did a quick head count of the company members.

"Where is Bilbo?" the Grey wizard asked with a deep frown.

"Where is our hobbit?"

Thorin inwardly groaned - the hobbit was indeed a burden. The other dwarves looked at each other and Nori muttered something about Bilbo slipping away when the rest of them were taken away by the goblins. _Well of course he did_, Thorin thought to himself angrily. He had overheard Bilbo's conversation with Bofur before they fell through the trap door, about leaving them to go back to the Shire. Let him go then...they will reclaim Erebor without the burglar.

"Mr. Bilbo saw his chance to leave, and he took it! We will not see our burglar again!" Thorin said angrily, but he was interrupted by a timid voice behind him.

"No he didn't," Bilbo seemed to have appeared out of nowhere and was now standing in front of the entire company.

Everyone except Thorin seemed quite happy to see their burglar again and began asking him how he escaped.

"Why did you come back?" Thorin asked authoritatively.

He wanted to know why indeed Bilbo had returned. The hobbit had made it clear before that he had no intention of assisting them on their quest. When Bilbo turned his head to face the dwarf King, there was a look in his eyes that Thorin had not seen in him before. The hobbit's eyes contained what looked like compassion...and _courage_.

"Look, I know you doubt me, I know you always have. And you're right... I often think of Bag End. I miss my books, and my armchair, and my garden. See, that's where I belong, that's home. That's why I came back... 'cause you don't have one, a home. It was taken from you. But I will help you take it back if I can."

There was a long silence that followed. The company grew solemn as they regarded the small hobbit in a new light. Thorin was also surprised yet touched at Bilbo's words. He realized that the hobbit did not have to risk his life to help them on their quest, yet he had stayed. Thorin respected that deeply. Bilbo's newfound attitude reminded Thorin of Sophie, and how she had also promised to stand by them to defeat the dragon Smaug...And Thorin had left her behind like she was a nobody. Regret and sadness waved over him and although he could not admit it to his men, he wanted nothing more at that moment to go back and tell the young witch how important she was to this quest...how important she was to him.

"Thorin!"

Thorin thought it was only his imagination when he heard the familiar voice that he had longed to hear again since leaving Rivendell. But it wasn't his imagination. The other dwarves began to cheer in pleasant surprise as they saw Sophie run towards them, her cloak billowing behind her. Thorin couldn't believe his eyes - Sophie was here in front of him. He grinned at her, but then stopped when he realized that something was not right. There was a sense of urgency in the witch's movements and she wasn't smiling at the company - in fact, Sophie looked absolutely terrified.

"Orcs! They're coming to kill us! We need to get out of here, NOW!" Sophie yelled at them.

It was at that point that Thorin realized he had led his men out of the frying pan, and straight into the fire.

"Run!" Gandalf yelled as soon as Sophie reached them.

The crunching sound the company made as their feet stomped over the dry branches and leaves was quickly drowned out by the howls and screams of the orcs riding towards them on their wargs. Sophie could see a gigantic warg only around ten meters behind, snarling as it charged towards her. It was no use - they would be outrun in any minute.

"Quickly, up into the trees!" Gandalf directed.

Sophie watched Gloin step on Bombur's head to hoist himself up onto one of the thick branches of the tree in front of him. The other dwarves were also quickly climbing up the tree trunk before the orcs could get them. The dwarves were much fitter than Sophie was, and she doubted she could climb up the trees as nimbly as they had. The young witch was thinking about how she was going to climb up the tree herself when she felt two strong arms grab her waist and lift her up. She looked behind to see Thorin holding her close to him, a pained expression on his face. Thorin kept his arms around Sophie protectively as the wargs snapped their teeth inches from their feet. This was exactly the kind of situation Thorin had feared would happen.

"Whatever you do, don't let go," the dwarf King told Sophie as he helped her climb higher up the tree towards where Dwalin was hanging.

Upon seeing them, Dwalin nodded reassuringly and took Sophie from Thorin's hold. Thorin remained on the lower branch and looked around to make sure the rest of his men were alright, especially his young nephews. Fortunately, everybody appeared to be holding on, given the circumstances.

When Thorin looked down, he froze in horror and disbelief. There, riding towards them on a large white warg, was the pale orc whom Thorin had believed he had killed in the battle of Moria. Thorin heard Balin gasp next to him - the old dwarf had fought along beside him and had witnessed the scene where Thorin had cleaved off Azog's arm clean.

"It cannot be," the dwarf King whispered to himself, his eyes never leaving the cold and smug glare of the pale orc.

Azog watched amusedly as Thorin and his company struggled against the shaking trees where the wargs were clawing at, his malicious grin growing wider as the trees began to tip over on one side. Sophie let out a yelp in fright as her footing slipped. Luckily, Dwalin was quick to grab her wrist - otherwise she would have fallen and become warg dinner. The tree continued to tip over as the wargs relentlessly attacked it, and it was only a matter of time before the tree would fall down. Without letting go of Sophie, Dwalin yelled out to the other dwarves,

"Jump!"

Sophie was pulled along with the dwarf warrior to the branches of the neighboring tree where Gandalf was hanging on to. Bilbo and the other dwarves also jumped over just as the tree they had previously been residing in toppled over with a loud thud. In the distance Sophie could hear Azog laugh cruelly at the company's helplessness and vulnerability. They were surrounded and had nowhere to escape. Suddenly, a wave of heat whooshed past Sophie's head and she saw a small ball of fire fly out and hit one of the wargs - Gandalf had thrown a pinecone with which he had ignited.

"Quick! Sophie, use your wand to light up some more pinecones!" Gandalf ordered the young witch as he passed another blaring pinecone to Kili who took his aim at the orcs.

Without further delay, Sophie also began picking the pinecones that were hanging from the branches before pulling out her wand from beneath her cloak.

"Incendio!"

Instantly flames arose onto the pinecones, which Sophie quickly handed over to Dwalin and Bilbo who were nearby her. The ground below them roared with orange flames and the wargs became more reluctant to carry on attacking. Thorin saw Azog's first surprised and then furious expression as he watched Sophie cast the fire-charm. The way the pale orc leered at the young witch made Thorin grip the branch he was holding onto even more tightly in anger. He could not help her - he could not help any of his men for that matter. Thorin had failed in looking after his company, and his chest grew tight to see Sophie shake in fear near him. Azog noticed the change in the dwarf King's demeanor and the hideous grin reappeared on his face - he had found Thorin's weakness. The pale orc stared at Thorin and spoke slowly in the black speech of orcs,

"I will hurt your little witch first and slice her arm off in front of your eyes, and then I will kill you. Thorin, son of Thrain."

Thorin had had enough. He knew what he was about to do was near a suicide mission, but he had to do something, _anything_ to protect his company - that was his duty as King. Thorin climbed out of the tree which had now virtually leaned over on a ninety degree angle, and he charged towards the pale orc with determined steps, his Orcrist held tightly in his hands. Azog remained seated on his warg waiting, the disgusting grin never leaving his face as the dwarf King got closer - this was exactly the way he had wanted Thorin to act.

Thorin didn't get so much as a chance to strike with his sword when Azog swung his menacing club high into the air before bringing it down onto the dwarf King's chest. Thorin felt all the air leaving his lungs and a searing pain in his chest that quickly followed the attack. He could hardly remain standing - the blow was even more powerful due to the height difference with Azog on his gigantic warg. Another blow in the same place on his chest sent the dwarf King slamming onto a sharp boulder in pure pain. Thorin panted as he tried to remember how to breathe - his thorax felt as though it had been smashed in. In his crippled, lying position on the cold ground, Thorin could only manage to turn his head sideways towards the falling tree where his company was. He saw Sophie watching his helplessness with tears streaming down her pale face. She was crying and screaming out what seemed to be his name, judging by the movements of her lips. Thorin wanted to stay strong for her, and for all his men too - he needed to reassure them as their King. He tried to sit up and retrieve his sword that was lying next to him, but Azog was relentless. The pale orc directed his warg over the dwarf King's body and stared first at Sophie hanging on the tree, and then down at Thorin, with amused and evil eyes.

Thorin yelled in pain as the white warg sunk its teeth into his upper body. It began to shake him like he was a rag doll before throwing him against the rocks again. By this point, there was no more strength left inside Thorin and he could feel himself growing numb. A warm, wet feeling spread across his chest beneath his sturdy armour - he could feel himself bleeding. Azog let out a mocking yawn before ordering a nearby orc,

"Bring me his head."

Upon hearing his master's order, the orc scuttled over gleefully with a sharp blade. When he stopped in front of Thorin who was lying on the ground unable to move (despite his best efforts), the orc slowly lifted the sword high into the air to bring down onto the dwarf King's neck. As the blade hung suspended in the air, Thorin turned his head to see Sophie one last time. He truly did love the young witch - he could admit to his feelings now, but he was too late. Thorin's chest tightened (and not just in pain) as he grieved silently that he would die, never having confessed to Sophie how much he loved her.


	14. Flight of the eagles

Chapter Fourteen

Sophie clung to the tree branch, watching in horror as the monstrous warg threw Thorin around as if he was a rag doll. The pale orc sat on the white beast and laughed loudly. Sophie could not take it anymore - She could not stay hidden in the tree like a coward while her friend was getting tossed around painfully. When Thorin's groan reached her ears, the young witch could literally feel her heart tearing apart. She had to do something...anything. Dwalin and the other dwarves (except Ori and Dori who had fallen out of the tree and were now clinging for their lives on Gandalf's staff) were also desperately trying to run to their King's aid. However the weight of their strong-built bodies and weapons were making it impossible for them to so much as take a couple of steps without breaking the branch that they were standing on and falling. Even the lightest of the group, Filli and Killi, were finding it difficult to move across the thin branches. It would be too late by the time the dwarves reached Thorin. But on the other hand, Sophie was much lighter than the dwarves - she could climb down much more quickly. _I cannot let evil take away my loved ones from me again_, Sophie thought to herself silently as she looked behind her to Gandalf. Upon seeing the determination in the witch's face, the old wizard nodded - he understood what she was about to do, and his support gave Sophie the courage she needed.

Just as Sophie stood up with her wand grasped tightly in her left hand, she felt a rustling movement beside her. The movement was quickly followed by the sound of the metallic scrape of a sword being pulled out. It was Bilbo. Sophie had been so preoccupied with Thorin that she had forgotten about her little hobbit friend who had been standing next to her the entire time. And moreover he was a hobbit, which meant that he too was not as heavy as the dwarves. Sophie continued to watch in appreciation and surprise as Bilbo began to climb down the tree with her.

"Come on, Sophie. We've got to do something," the hobbit said bravely as he took another step.

Sophie nodded and quickly followed Bilbo's movements. The two small figures began their way down the tree as quickly as they could. Being naturally more stealthy and coordinated than Sophie was, Bilbo managed to climb down the tree first and he raced over to where Thorin was lying on the ground. The glowing blue light of his small blade penetrated the darkness of the night. Before the orc henchman could bring his dagger down onto the dwarf King's neck, Bilbo heroically knocked the orc over with the force of his body, before stabbing the foul creature in the chest. The orc let out a piercing scream of pain before falling to the ground. The pale orc remained on his warg as he watched the entire scene unfold in front of him. Sophie could see the way his eyes burnt with hatred for the small hobbit who stood facing him with his legs apart and his sword held high. He kicked his warg to move closer towards Bilbo, and his face twisted into an ugly smile as the hobbit unskillfully swung his blade from side-to-side.

The pale orc was much too preoccupied with Bilbo that he failed to catch Sophie charging towards him with her wand pointing at his unsuspecting back. Just as the filthy monster turned around to face her, Sophie yelled out an explosion spell.

"Expulso!"

A jet of red light shot out from the tip of her wand and hit the pale orc square on in the chest. Unfortunately the spell was not strong enough to knock him out, but it did send the pale orc flying off the white warg in which he had been riding on. The pale orc roared in anger, having been humiliated in front of his orcish followers first by a hobbit, and then by being caught off guard by none other than a young woman.

"Thanks, Sophie" Bilbo whispered shakily as Sophie ran and stood next to him.

Surprise was an understatement of what Thorin felt when he saw first Bilbo run at the orc who was standing on top of him, and then Sophie knock Azog off his warg (who was twice her size). He desperately wanted to help them and fight back, but his body felt detached from his mind, paralyzed on the ground. _So the quest ends here_, a sad voice echoed in the dwarf King's mind, and no matter how hard he tried to push the thought away, it only resonated louder. He had failed his people in reclaiming Erebor...and he had failed Sophie.

When the pale orc got himself back up, he was no longer smiling. One of the other orcs scuttled over to help him to his feet but his leader kicked him away angrily. With his blood-red eyes fixed on Sophie and Bilbo, the pale orc advanced closer towards them, his club raised threateningly high above his head. It was the same club he had used to beat Thorin unconscious.

"Now what do we do?" Bilbo asked in a terrified voice, all the previous courage and adrenaline having left him.

"Seriously, I didn't think that far," Sophie tried to joke, but there was nothing funny about their situation.

The pale orc was not going to play any more games with them, nor was he going to exercise his strength. Sophie could tell that when he next strikes, it would be to kill them. Sophie still felt immeasurable fear, but not any regret for her actions. If she was to die whilst protecting her friend, then so be it. Bilbo too appeared to have accepted his fate, for he stopped shaking as he remained standing beside Sophie. Wordlessly, the two people clasped hands and held their ground, reay to protect Thorin to the very end. As Azog lifted his club, Sophie shut her eyes, expecting unfathomable pain to follow.

But the blow never came.

A sudden beastly screech from above caused Sophie to open her eyes and look up. A group of gigantic brown eagles were flying towards them, picking up and throwing the orcs off the cliff as they did so. Bilbo seemed equally as shocked as Sophie at the appearance of such powerful creatures before them.

"Eagles! How did they get here?" the hobbit asked, completely dumbfounded.

Sophie looked behind her at the grey wizard who was hanging on to the tree branch. Gandalf gave the young witch a smile of relief as he dropped Ori and Dori onto one of the Eagle's back before jumping on another eagle himself. The other dwarves were also being carried away by the eagles, away from the disastrous scene. Thorin too, was picked up by an eagle and taken away. Sophie looked ahead of her and saw the last eagle swoop down towards her and Bilbo. Relief spread over her body - it was going to be okay...they had been saved.

"It's our turn now," Sophie whispered to Bilbo nervously, just as the eagle picked the two people up with its claws and dropped them on the back of its neighboring eagle. As the eagles carried the company members away, Azog screamed in annoyance, and he let out what sounded like a string of orcish curses towards his escapees. His blood curdling scream grew quieter and quieter as the eagles flew farther away.

ooOoOoOoOoOoOoOoo

**I'm sorry for not updating in a long time. I have some important tests and assignments to get through T.T**

**Thanks for reading! You guys truly are the most wonderful readers :)**

**The next chapter will be coming soon! And I promise you it will not be so violent as the last two were.**


	15. Mixed emotions

Chapter Fifteen

The air above the mountains was much cooler than it was below. Sophie pressed her body closer against the eagle's body which she was riding on, in order to absorb some of the heat that was radiating out of its feathered body. It had been a long time since Sophie had been so high up in the air, as she no longer had her broom to fly on. It was an uplifting feeling to be able to experience flying again. She still could not believe that they had all escaped from the orcs, alive and in one piece. Sophie felt strangely relaxed and comfortable sitting on the eagle's back, although she could safely bet that the other company members (excluding Gandalf) would think otherwise. Bilbo, who was sitting next to Sophie, did not seem to be particularly enjoying the ride at all, and he let out an involuntary squeal every time the eagle performed a little dip in the air. As the breeze died down, Sophie relaxed even more and she absent-mindedly stroked the magnificent beast's feathers which were longer than her entire arm. The eagles reminded Sophie of the Ravenclaw house at Hogwarts which Jesse was in, and she guessed that was the reason why she felt so safe and protected while riding on their backs. It was a comforting thought that her brother was looking over their quest by appearing in different forms. The young witch closed her eyes and peacefully welcomed the next breeze that blew towards them.

_(It was her first year at Hogwarts. It was a beautiful April afternoon, and the school grounds flourished with all the fresh vegetation that had bloomed. Sophie was at the Quidditch pitch with Jesse. She was getting some extra broom-flying lessons from her brother who played as the chaser for the Ravenclaw Quidditch team. Despite her brother's careful instructions, Sophie was finding it difficult to steer her broom towards the direction she wanted it to fly._

_"You've just got to be a bit more confident, sis," Jesse told her patiently as Sophie flew past him at a speed slower than a walking pace, terrified that something wrong will happen if she flew any faster._

_"But what if I fall off?"_

_Jesse laughed (not unkindly) at his sister's innocent question, but he stopped when he saw that Sophie was being serious. The older wizard flew his broom next to Sophie's and looked her in the eyes, smiling. His blue quidditch uniform billowed softly against the breeze._

_"You don't have to worry about that, Sophie. You know I won't ever let you fall."_

_"I know that. It's just…what if you're not there?"_

_"I will always be there to catch you, Sophie. Don't you worry about that.")_

The flashback hit Sophie so suddenly that the young witch almost let go of the eagle's feathers. Thankfully, Bilbo was there to steady her. The hobbit gently shook Sophie's shoulder, concerned at her sudden change in mood.

"Hey, Sophie, are you alright?" He asked and Sophie just nodded.

When Sophie didn't say anything, Bilbo moved closer and rubbed her arms with his palms comfortingly. _He's just like Jesse_, Sophie thought to herself silently.

"It's okay. Flying on eagles makes me nervous too," the hobbit whispered kindly, misinterpreting the witch's heavy breathing for aviophobia.

Sophie managed a small smile and nodded again. It was a good thing that the eagles were now preparing to land – she was starting to get worried that the flashback would come back again without warning.

The eagles dropped the company off at the edge of a high cliff, before flying off into the clouds again. Sophie was greatful for the timing of their rescue, and she felt a bit sad to see them go. But her attention quickly went back to Thorin, who had just been lowered down gently by the eagle that had carried him. Sophie ran over to the dwarf King who remained unconscious, her heart sinking at the sight of his injuries. Gandalf arrived shortly after and hurried over to Thorin. He knelt down beside him, and placed the tips of his fingers gently over Thorin's forehead. The company watched, holding their breath, as the Grey wizard muttered some spells quietly. Sophie let out a sigh of relief as Thorin's eyes fluttered open, and she silently gave a prayer of thanks to whoever was out there for watching over them.

Thorin was surprised to wake up and find himself on the ground with all the company members staring down at him. At first he wondered why they were all staring at him with so much concern, but then a sharp jab of pain in his ribs brought him back to reality, and the events that had taken prior.

"The hobbit? What about Sophie? Is everybody alright?" Thorin asked Gandalf in a ramble.

"Everyone is fine, Thorin. It is you who needs to be looked over," Gandalf answered, relief evident in his voice.

Thorin sat up, rather painfully. He remembered seeing a pair of enormous claws coming towards him before he passed out. It all didn't make sense. One minute he was getting knocked around by Azog, and the next he was on the ground with Bilbo and Sophie standing over him. The events were all in a jumble in his mind. But nonetheless Thorin knew that had it not been for the young witch and the hobbit, he would surely be dead, and he owed each of them an apology. The dwarf King limped over to where Bilbo and Sophie were standing at the back nervously. He cursed the pain in his leg as he did so, but he stood up as straight as he could.

"You!" Thorin began speaking to the hobbit, his voice coming out rougher than he had anticipated.

Bilbo seemed quite taken aback, and he edged further behind Sophie's back.

"What were you doing? You nearly got yourself killed! Did I not say that you would be a burden, that you would not survive in the wild and that you have no place amongst us? I've never been so wrong in all my life," and with that, Thorin gave Bilbo a tight hug.

Sophie stared along with the rest of the company members, shocked at Thorin's actions. The dwarf King had openly despised Bilbo, and here he was embracing the small hobbit like he was his brother. As soon as Thorin let go of Bilbo, the other dwarves began surrounding their leader, clapping Thorin on the back and joking with him about his near death experience.

"Good to see your head on your shoulders, lad," Dwalin said, and the other dwarves including Thorin laughed.

Sophie felt out of the loop, and so she just stood where she was, fidgeting with her fingers behind her back. She wanted to both run over and give Thorin a huge hug, and kick him in the leg for being foolish enough to take on the pale orc. But Sophie no longer knew if she was even still part of the company according to Thorin, and so she decided to let the original company members rejoice amongst themselves. Instead, Sophie walked over to where Gandalf was standing, watching the dwarves with a happy expression on his face. But her movements didn't go by completely unnoticed. Thorin hastily left his men (who were still laughing and having a good time) and walked over to Sophie. Gandalf gave a little cough before discreetly walking away. When Thorin arrived in front of Sophie, he stopped, and an awkward pause hung in the air for a few seconds.

"I'm glad you came back," Thorin said eventually, his eyes looking at Sophie softly.

Sophie could feel her pulse quickening, and she could tell the dwarf King was not unhappy to see her again.

"You can't get rid of me that easily," the young witch joked, and Thorin chuckled deeply.

Thorin took another small step towards Sophie and he lifted his hand towards her face. For one crazy moment, Sophie thought he was going to stroke her hair. But the dwarf King hesitantly left his fingers hanging in the air for a split second before laying it down gently on her shoulder. His blue eyes searched her face as he spoke again.

"No, I don't ever want to get rid of you again," Thorin whispered to her softly.

Before Sophie could react, the dwarf King walked back to his men without saying another word. Sophie stood in the same spot, utterly confused with Thorin's words and actions, as well as her own feelings for him. _What on earth have you gotten yourself into, Sophie?!_ A panicked voice spoke in the young witch's mind, and Sophie had no idea how to answer it.


	16. Love under the stars

Chapter Sixteen

Despite her gratefulness towards the eagles for rescuing the company, Sophie couldn't help but feel a slight disappointment at the prospect of having to climb down the mountain where they had been dropped off. It took the company a good few hours to get down the large rocks and back on the road. By the time they all made it down, the sun was beginning to set, giving the sky a deep, blood-red color. Everybody was tired both physically and emotionally from the hike along with last night's ordeal, and so it was decided to call it a day. A campfire was set up and the company members readied themselves to take a well earned rest.

Sophie sat by the warm campfire, absent mindedly fingering the phial hanging around her neck. She took it out from underneath her shirt and looked at the clear liquid inside it more carefully. The single drop of clear liquid glistened a shade of gold as Sophie put it closer to the light to get a better look. Sophie still didn't know what to think of this phial containing water from the magical falls of Animadur. Just before, she had tried to open the phial, but it would not open no matter how hard Sophie tried - for such a small glass phial, it was remarkably firm. Sophie fingered the rim of the lid around the small container, and was surprised to feel tiny little grooves underneath her fingertips. When she looked closer, Sophie could see that the inscriptions formed little words. The light of the fire was too dim for her to make out the words and Sophie pulled out wand and casted the spell,

"Lumos"

A small sphere of white light formed at the end of her wand, and Sophie brought it closer to the phial. The words were much clearer now and Sophie could read them without too much difficulty. The words read,

_(To love means to endure pain for someone else)_

Sophie frowned. What could those words possibly mean? Sophie's head hurt trying to work out the hidden meaning of the words. She sighed before tucking the phial back underneath her shirt, and stood up to help Bofur search for some more firewood.

ooOoOoOoOoOoOoOoo

Most of the supplies had been snatched away at the Goblin town, but luckily Sophie still had her backpack on which was full of the food Elrond had ordered to be packed for her.

"We manage to escape from Azog the defiler himself, yet here we are eating elven food," Gloin grumbled fondly.

However despite their initial reluctance, hunger got the best of the company members and they eagerly gobbled down the Lembas bread that Sophie handed out. Sophie was kind enough to pretend she did not see Bombur secretly sneak his hands into her rucksack and pull out a couple more of the soft bread (though she did consider mentioning to him that one bite was enough to fill the stomach of a fully grown man!). Everyone was having a relaxing time except Thorin. The dwarf King had moved away from where the rest of the company were sitting around the fire, and he seemed to be thinking to himself while staring into the distance. Sophie took Thorin's portion of Lembas bread and walked over softly to where the dwarf King was sitting with his back leaning against a large boulder. If Thorin saw her coming, he did not show it and he continued to stare at the setting sun. His actions confused Sophie - perhaps he wanted to be left alone, undisturbed. Sophie lowered the elvish bread beside the dwarf King and stood up to leave, but Thorin reached out and gently grabbed her by the wrist. Sophie felt a jolt of electricity flow through her from the touch, and she was surprised at how gentle yet firm Thorin's hold on her was.

"Please, stay," Thorin said quietly, there was a touch of pleading in his voice.

Sophie did as she was asked and (rather ungracefully) dropped herself next to the dwarf King, laughing softly at her own clumsiness as she did so - she was just too tired to worry herself with appearances tonight. Thorin also chuckled along with Sophie, but the deep look in his eyes did not disappear. He seemed to be deep in thought, but Sophie decided against asking him anything for she knew Thorin would tell her if he wanted her to know. The two figures sat in comfortable silence, admiring the hundreds of stars glistening above. The situation reminded Sophie of the night after the company had successfully escaped from the trolls and the conversation she had shared with Thorin in front of the fire. A few minutes passed like this before Thorin broke the silence.

"I thought I would be able to handle it," the dwarf King began, and Sophie frowned slightly.

"I'm sorry...handle what?"

"Azog and his taunting. He was the pale orc whom I thought I had killed many years ago in a different battle. I believed I had successfully avenged the death of my grandfather, but I was wrong. Seeing that foul beast was enough to make me boil with rage. I knew Azog was trying to lure me out of the tree and fight, and I also knew that it was a foolish idea to do so. But the orc still managed to get inside my head and control me to do what he wanted."

Sophie looked at Thorin with a sympathetic face. It was not difficult to imagine the inner torment the dwarf King beside her was going through. Even she would have been deeply shocked to see an enemy whom she thought had been destroyed appear in front of her, interfering in the middle of their quest.

"How did you understand what Azog was saying? He was speaking in the Black speech," Sophie asked and Thorin looked down at his feet.

"I taught myself the Black speech so that I would be able to understand the orcs' plans during battles."

There was a short pause before Thorin continued speaking, this time much more hesitantly.

"I let Azog get to my head - let his words consume me. I'm weak...how can I ever hope to lead my people and rebuild Erebor, when I cannot even fight an orc?" Thorin stopped when he saw Sophie shake her head.

"No, Thorin - you're not weak. At times foolish, yes. But you are not weak. You are the most bravest and honorable dwarf I have ever met, and I do not doubt that you will make a great King for your people."

Thorin smiled at the witch next to him - her words had given him the comfort he needed.

"So, I am the bravest dwarf you have ever met, but a foolish one too?" Thorin asked jokingly, and Sophie laughed and gave the dwarf a playful poke in the arm.

"The most foolish dwarf in the whole of Middle Earth."

The two figures laughed heartedly despite how tired they both were from last night's ordeal. After a few moments Thorin looked at Sophie again and spoke, this time more seriously.

"Sophie, why did you come back?"

Sophie looked into Thorin's intense blue eyes - they were looking hopefully into her own eyes as though searching for the answer. She thought to herself for a moment before returning the question.

"Why did you ask me to stay in Rivendell?"

Thorin was quiet for a few seconds. Sophie's heart fluttered involuntarily as she waited for the answer.

"Is it not obvious? How much I care for you, Sophie?" Thorin asked so softly as he gazed at the young witch endearingly.

"Do you care for me?" He asked the next question very carefully, as though he was treading water.

Sophie felt torn. In many ways she felt overjoyed to hear Thorin tell her how much he cared for her. But a small part of Sophie, the part housing insecurity and self-doubt, made her feel unworthy of taking up such an important part in the dwarf King's heart. Her lack of response drained all the hope in Thorin's face, and he looked away again hastily.

"I see that my feelings have been one-sided. My apologies for making you feel uncomfortable," Thorin said sadly and Sophie's heart sank.

"No, it's not that Thorin...I do care for you - I like you alot. But it must end here," Sophie spoke in a grieved voice.

"Why do you say that?" Thorin asked with a new spring to his voice.

Sophie did have feelings for him, Thorin dared to hope. The hesitation was evident in Sophie's face as she struggled to find the right words.

"You are a King, Thorin. I am a nobody...Gosh, I'm not even a dwarf. I don't deserve you. You will need to love and share your life with a real dwarvish princess once you reclaim Erebor, not a plain woman like myself."

Sophie felt embarrassed as she spoke the truth - she felt vulnerable and exposed. Thorin didn't say anything for a long time after listening to Sophie's words. Sophie guessed that he had realised how silly he had been to develop feelings for someone like her. So, she was completely taken by surprise when Thorin slowly lifted his hands and gently tucked back a wisp of hair that had escaped from her bun.

"That kind of thing means nothing to me, Sophie," the dwarf King said in a deep voice.

His fingers lingered on Sophie's cheeks long after the piece of hair was tucked back behind her ear. Thorin guided the tip of his fingers ever so gently, first around Sophie's jaw, before brushing them over her mouth. Sophie's lips quivered in excitement and she closed her eyes, savoring the feeling. Thorin reluctantly lowered his hands from Sophie's face before he could cross the line where he knew he would not be able to stop himself. He wanted to press his own lips against Sophie's, but he knew he could not rush the young witch.

"Sorry," he said quickly before standing up to leave.

Thorin looked at Sophie one more time, nodding at the Lembas bread.

"Thank you, for the food. Please, have a good rest. We will need to start the day early as soon as the sun comes up."

Not knowing what to say, Sophie nodded and Thorin walked off to discuss matters of the company's quest with Gandalf and Balin. Sophie remained sitting in the exact spot where Thorin had left her. She closed her eyes and tried to get some sleep. But the only thing Sophie could think about was the tinkling sensation Thorin's fingers had left on her lips as he brushed over them, and the look of complete love and desire in the dwarf King's eyes as he lay his eyes on her.


	17. At the house of Beorn

Chapter Seventeen

It was just reaching the end of dawn when Thorin gently shook Sophie awake from her sleep.

"We will be leaving in an hour," he told her, as he pulled her up from the ground.

The rest of the company was already up and getting ready to move out. The dwarves did so begrudgingly, not having had any breakfast due to the shortness of their food supplies. Sophie stood up and hastily swiped the fleck of dirt resting on her cloak. Thorin watched her wordlessly for a few seconds before walking off to help the rest of his men pack what little supplies they had left. Neither Sophie nor Thorin mentioned what happened last night, the way Thorin had caressed Sophie's face. Both figures were a bit embarrassed and shy to bring the matter up, despite how much both of them enjoyed it.

The company continued their expedition, walking non-stop for the entire morning over hills of gravel and large boulders. Sophie was just wondering if the rocky landscape would ever finish, when they reached the top of the final hill. Below the hil lay ahead a large forest. The dense vegetation seemed to stretch on forever, even longer than the desolate hills the company had been treading through the long morning.

"Mister Gandalf, please don't tell us we have to pass through that forest?" Nori asked with a scowl on his bearded face.

"Do not complain, Nori. Crossing the forest Mirkwood - home to the King of elves Thranduil - is the fastest route to Erebor," the old wizard replied with a hoot.

The idea of entering elven territory did not appeal highly to Thorin, and the fact that it was Thranduil made his mood go sour. The dwarf King would never forget the day the elves had betrayed his grandfather and refused to help the dwarves when Smaug attacked. But he knew Gandalf was right - this was the fastest route back to their home, and there was nothing Thorin wanted to do more than reclaim the Lonely Mountains for his people.

"We shall seek refuge at the home of Beorn. Hopefully we will also be able replenish our supplies that are starting to show their bottom," Gandalf said lightly as he lead the company down the steps towards a large house sitting just at the edge of the trees of Mirkwood.

From a distance, Sophie found the exterior of the house welcoming enough, with its large front door and stone chimney. The smoke billowing out of the chimney indicated that the owner of the house was present inside the building. When they reached around fifty meters from the old farmhouse, Gandalf signaled the company to stop walking any further.

"There are a few things you all need to know about our host, Beorn," Gandalf said looking at each of the company members individually.

"First of all, Beorn is a skin-changer. He can change from his human form into a large bear."

Sophie's mouth dropped open along with Bilbo and a few of the dwarves. So, this man named Beorn was somewhat similar to an Animagus. Sophie could remember very clearly the first time she had seen an Animagus transform in front of her. It had been in her first year at Hogwarts, when Sophie and her friend Ginny Weasley had ventured into the school library to study for an upcoming test. The young witch had screeched so loudly when the tabby cat prowling the bookshelves beside her suddenly leaped into the air and changed into Professor Mcgonagall, that the librarian ran out of her office to see what all the commotion was about. Sophie replayed the memory in her mind fondly, remembering the way Professor McGonagall had rather sheepishly explained to the two girls that she had merely wanted to compliment them for their studious habits.

"Do not worry, Beorn will not do you any harm as long as you do not give him any reason to do so," Gandalf said breezily upon seeing the doubt in the faces of each and every one of the company members.

The Grey wizard continued on talking cheerfully,

"Now, the second thing about Beorn is that he is a very suspicious man. I believe it stems from his hatred of orcs and goblins, and their spies - there are many in this particular area of Middle Earth. He is easily overwhelmed therefore, I do not think it is a good idea to have all fifteen of you trapeze in through his front door together."

"Hmph! He had no trouble bringing all the dwarves into my hobbit hole!" Bilbo grumbled quietly, earning a stern look from Gandalf.

"You will visit Beorn two at a time - that seems to be the best way to do it. I shall go first by myself and explain to Beorn about your arrivals. Make sure to approach the house, leaving ten minute intervals in between each pair," and with that, Gandalf left the company as he strode down to the skin-changer's house.

As soon as Gandalf left, the company members started moving and pairing up with each other. Ori to Dori, Fili to Kili, Dwalin to Balin, Oin to Gloin, and Nori to Bombur. Thorin wordlessly pulled Sophie by the arm so she ended up being paired up with him. Unfortunately for the dwarf King, there was an odd number of company members which meant poor Bilbo had nobody to enter Beorn's house with. The hobbit joined the young witch and dwarf King with an apologetic look on his face. Sophie smiled at Bilbo reassuringly, but Thorin muttered grumpily under his breath something along the lines of why couldn't the burglar go find his own partner.

They waited ten minutes after Gandalf had left, doing nothing in particular but enjoying the peacefulness of the sunny afternoon. Thorin, Sophie and Bilbo were the first of the company to walk over to Beorn's house. The heavy scent of lavender from the bushes that were planted in a row under the window of the house tickled Sophie's nose. The trio tentatively stopped in front of the firmly shut door, which Thorin knocked on loudly three times. The door opened and the three figures were greeted by a large, rough-looking man. Sophie assumed the man was Beorn, the skin-changer. Even in his human form, it was not difficult to imagine Beorn as a large bear, for there was something notably bear-like in his physical features.

"Welcome, Thorin Oakenshield and friends!" Beorn boomed warmly, making Bilbo jump in fright next to Sophie.

"We thank you for your warm welcome," Thorin returned the gesture with a polite nod.

The sweet aroma of baking lingered in the hallway when the trio entered the house. Gandalf was sitting at the end of a wooden dining table located by the window, looking quite at home as he smoked on his long pipe. Sophie stood still to take a good look around Beorn's house. Most of the furniture were made of wood (probably the creations of the skin-changer himself), and everything was VERY large-sized. It was obvious that Beorn did not receive many visits from hobbits or dwarves, or other small free folk for that matter. The large scaling of the house made the three figures appear even smaller than they already were, an aspect that made Sophie feel quite nervous despite Beorn's kindness. Without really thinking the young witch stuck close to Thorin's side, who did not object to her actions.

"It's quite nice isn't it?" Beorn boomed behind the trio, making Bilbo jump again.

"You like the way I decorated my house, aye?"

"Yes, and I love the smell of whatever you are baking," Sophie answered shyly, and the skin-changer grinned at the compliment.

Beorn's eyes began to swivel from Sophie then to Thorin who was standing next to the young witch, with a thoughtful look in his eyes. Then with a clap of his hands, Beorn exclaimed excitedly,

"And to whom do I owe the pleasure for meeting the wife of Thorin Oakenshield?"

Gandalf chuckled loudly and Bilbo grinned as both Thorin and Sophie blushed, not entirely sure if Beorn had really mistaken the young witch as Thorin's wife. Nobody could blame the skin-changer for thinking that - Thorin and Sophie were standing very close to each other and the way Thorin protectively watched over the young witch did not go by unnoticed.

"Sophie is not my wife, Master Beorn. Nonetheless she is a valued member of the company for this quest," Thorin told Beorn firmly with a slight cough.

Secretly deep down inside, Thorin admitted to himself that he did not mind at all for Beorn mistaking Sophie for his wife. In fact the thought of the young witch being his betrothed brought a tingle of happiness to the dwarf King. However he knew the thought was inappropriate considering how embarrassed Sophie had become, and he quickly pushed the pleasurable thought out of his mind.

Beorn nodded apologetically before coughing loudly (everybody seemed to be in a fit of coughing!).

"My apologies. I sincerely hope that I have not insulted either of you," the skin changer said humbly.

Despite her initial embarrassment, Sophie felt for Beorn who probably was equally embarrassed by his previous exclamation. The young witch smiled and gently placed her small hand on Beorn's broad shoulder.

"There are no hard feelings, Beorn," she said kindly, and smiled as Beorn's eyes lighted up in obvious relief.

Thankfully Sophie and Thorin were spared from any further awkwardness, for there was another knock on the door. Beorn hurried away to welcome Fili and Kili, who both bowed to the skin changer with a cheerful "At your service!". Sophie felt both embarrassed and confused by the situation. During her entire life, the only men who Sophie had shared any real relationship with was Jesse and Radagast - and even then, they were merely family ties. Over the last few months, Sophie had grown very close with all of the company members - they were now much like her extended family. But Sophie could not deny the fact that her feelings for Thorin were much more than that. It felt strange to develop such complicated emotions for another man.

ooOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoo

_In her nightmare, Sophie is up in the trees watching Azog beat Thorin to death. Whenever the young witch tries to climb down to help her friend, the tree branches pull her back with their freakishly long vines. They coil around her wrists making it impossible for Sophie to move. Thorin's scream of pain can be heard from below the tree, followed by the laugh of the pale orc. The young witch watched tearfully as Thorin's body grew limp with every new blow he received from Azog, and he lay still next to another cold body - Jesse. Sophie could do nothing but watch with horror as Azog stomped over towards Thorin with his club raised high above his head. As the pale orc brought the club down, Sophie screamed._

Thorin was awoken from his own restless sleep by the young witch's screaming voice. The company members were all scattered around on the floor of Beorn's living room, sprawled over large bed rolls. It was still dark, and Thorin blinked a couple of times in order to adjust his eyes to the darkness. It took a couple of minutes for Thorin to identify which sleeping form was Sophie's - the young witch lay in the furthest corner of the room, her body lying in an uncomfortable-looking bent position. Thorin raised his body up quietly and crept over to where Sophie was sleeping, being careful not to wake up any of the other company members. Sophie was crying in her sleep with tears pouring down her soft face. Thorin bent down and gently wiped the tear off the young witch's cheek with his thumb.

"Sophie, wake up" he said gently.

"You're having a nightmare, you have to wake up."

Too deep within her nightmare, Sophie couldn't hear the dwarf King and she continued to weep fearfully. Thorin looked around at the other company members who were still sleeping soundly. He convinced himself that the next actions he was about to perform were to ensure his men were not going to be woken up by Sophie's screams, but he knew that wasn't the only reason. As the dwarf King lay himself down next to Sophie, he wrapped his arms around her small body gently and stroked her hair in a rhythmic motion. Slowly Sophie's body relaxed and the tears stopped flowing out of her shut eyes. The young witch began to breathe more deeply and evenly as she lay enveloped in Thorin's arms. By the sound of her breathing, Thorin could tell the nightmare had ended and that Sophie was now peacefully sleeping. The dwarf King was surprised to find that not only did he like holding Sophie as she slept, but holding her small frame close to his body calmed Thorin down as well. For a moment, he felt that everything was going to be alright - the troubles and pressure of what lay ahead in the quest could be forgotten. Thorin could feel sleep take over his body as well, and this time he did not fight the urge to close his eyes and dream about reclaiming Erebor, and bringing joy back to his people.

There was one other dwarf who was awoken from his sleep that night. Kili who had been sleeping closest to Sophie woke up at the sound of the young witch's cries. The young dwarf made to get himself up and help Sophie to wake up, but stopped himself when he heard the familiar quiet footsteps of his uncle come towards them. Dear reader, you cannot blame young Kili for being astonished at the way his uncle - known by everyone for his battle-hardened toughness and cold character - bent down and stroked the young witch's cheek in such a loving way. The cold exterior of Thorin's outer shell seemed to have melted away by Sophie's kindness - she had unknowingly healed Thorin's heart. As Kili continued to watch Thorin lie himself down next to Sophie and soothe her by holding her in his arms, the young prince knew his uncle had fallen in love.

ooOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoo

**Hello! So I've decided to continue on with the story following the book (with a few twists and changes in characters of my own!). Thanks for reading, and updates will happen soon~**


	18. Peace interrupted

Chapter Eighteen

Fili was rather taken aback when his younger brother shook him up awake at dawn. All the other company members were still sound asleep except for Balin and Thorin who appeared to have already woken up and left the room. Gandalf was also nowhere to be seen. Kili was never an early bird, so his older brother felt that whatever the matter was, it must be important. Wordlessly, Fili did as he was asked and got himself up into a sitting position, the desire for more sleep clearly evident on his handsome face. Fili was even more shocked to hear from Kili that he had seen their uncle take Sophie into his embrace last night - it just didn't sound like the Thorin Oakenshield Fili knew.

"You sure of this, Kili? I mean, it was pretty late last night and you were probably under shock from the whole incident with Azog," Fili said wearily, a dubious expression on his face.

Kili shook his head energetically.

"No, I am sure that what I saw last night was not my imagination," the younger of the Durin brothers answered determinedly.

Fili automatically swiveled his eyes towards Sophie's sleeping form. Since his uncle had risen before Kili had woken him up, Fili had no idea whether his brother was telling the truth about Thorin holding Sophie and sleeping beside her. But the fair-haired dwarf knew his brother (despite his mischievous personality) would never lie to him about something so intimate as this. Kili stared at his older brother with what seemed like a hopeful expression - the young dwarf had a caring heart and wished for his uncle to find some happiness after everything that had happened in his life.

"Do you think Sophie will love him back, Fili?" Kili asked excitedly.

Fili shrugged. He really was clueless about pleasing women, and his uncle wasn't the most likeable dwarf in Middle Earth. But perhaps Sophie _did_ love Thorin back. After all, the young witch had left the safety of Rivendell to continue assisting the company on their quest.

"I don't know, brother.," Fili replied in complete honesty.

"But I would think that Uncle's feelings for Sophie is not completely one-sided. I mean, Sophie did come back didn't she? Anyhow, it is not our position to mess with whatever relationship that exists between Uncle and Sophie. Get some sleep now, it is much too early to get up."

Kili nodded at his brother's words and slipped himself back under the sheets. Fili also lay himself back down, but sleep would not come so easily. If this was all true and their uncle had in fact finally fallen in love, Fili felt this was a turn for the better. Thorin deserved a chance at love - he was pounded down so harshly by life, it would be cruel for him to continue on looking over his people alone.

ooOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoo

The beautiful, warm morning sunlight poured in through the window and onto Sophie's face. It was a good few hours into the late morning, definitely past breakfast. The young witch lay on her bedroll and closed her eyes again. She felt strangely relaxed and comfortable – it had been a long time since Sophie had had a good sleep, and the luxury of not having to sleep out in the cold open wasn't the only reason. Sophie could have imagined it, but she was sure it was Thorin who she woke up to briefly during the middle of the night, his arms placed protectively around her waist. Everything that happened last night felt like a dream to her - she could not tell for certain if the image in her head was nothing more than her wild imagination fueled by desire. But the feeling had been so solid and real - Sophie had never felt more secure and relaxed. The other dwarves had already woken up, and Thorin and Balin were not in the living room where Sophie and everyone else was. Sophie could hear the two dwarves discussing in low voices in the kitchen next door.

Sophie felt like staying in the coziness of her bedroll a bit longer and she turned her body over to one side, only to see Fili and Kili sitting on two chairs in the opposite side of the room, staring at her with the most peculiar expression on their faces. Something about the shine in their eyes made it difficult for Sophie to ignore the two brothers and the young witch sighed as she got herself up.

"Is something wrong?" Sophie asked, and her suspicion only grew when the Durin brothers shook their heads furiously but remained grinning all the same.

"Oh, nothing. You look very fresh today though, Sophie," Kili said with a wink.

The two dwarves were definitely holding back a dirty secret. Sophie blushed and she was just about to come up with a retort when Dwalin walked over to where she was sitting on her bedroll.

"Time to get up now, lass. You didn't think your sword fighting lessons would be over with one session did you?" The dwarf warrior said, and he let out a rough but friendly laughter when he saw Sophie scowl.

Sophie reluctantly stood up from her warm bedroll and began to tie her hair up. Her whole body ached from yesterday's non-stop walking, as well as their confrontation with the orcs. But she instantly felt guilty about her complaining attitude. The other company members were all holding on well, and Thorin especially would certainly be much more worn out than she was. Sophie hastily grabbed her sword from its scabbard and followed Dwalin out into Beorn's backyard. The host of the house seemed to have disappeared, but that did not bother Sophie. Beorn knew the area better than any of them - he can look after himself.

The lovely, dry weather had continued on from yesterday and Sophie could feel the sleep leaving her body as she breathed in the fresh air. Gandalf was sitting under an apple tree, smoking away contentedly on his pipe - Sophie wondered to herself where the old wizard kept his everlasting supply of plants that he smoked. The young witch was surprised to see Bilbo standing in the middle of the yard waiting for her with his own tiny sword in his hands.

"Gandalf reckons it would be a good idea if I join your sword fighting lessons," the hobbit told her and Sophie grinned back.

Learning with Bilbo made the lesson much more enjoyable for Sophie (although the young witch had to admit both she and Bilbo were still absolutely helpless at yielding their blades). Dwalin seemed to be intent on transforming Sophie and Bilbo into a pair of skilled warriors (an ambition dream!), and he was even more strict in their posture and movements than he was in their first lesson. The company's confrontation with Azog had certainly shaken everybody up, and Thorin's men were beginning to realize that pursuing this quest would mean that danger was never far behind.

Meanwhile inside Beorn's house, Thorin sat at the dining table with Balin, discussing with the old dwarf the route they would take when they enter Mirkwood the next day. They could not burden Beorn with their stay for too long, despite the skin-changer's welcome. It was decided that taking the western path would be the quickest and hence safest way through the secretive forest. The two dwarves had been up all morning making plans for the journey ahead, and to say that Thorin was tired was clearly an understatement. The dwarf King rubbed his temples and closed his eyes, relishing the moment of not having to use the muscles to keep his eyes open. Outside, he could hear the clash of metal blades banging against each other. This was followed by the sound of Dwalin's gruff, battle-hardened voice and Sophie's sweet one. Thorin longed to go outside himself and sit in the sun with Sophie, but he had his duties, and he sighed in annoyance. Thorin replayed the scene in his mind the time he touched Sophie's soft cheek, and he smiled to himself as he remembered the way Sophie had blushed at the contact. When Thorin reluctantly opened his eyes again he saw Balin watching him thoughtfully. The old dwarf smiled and stroked his white beard when their eyes met.

"Forgive me for staring, lad. But I must say that I have not seen you smile like that ever since Erebor was lost by Smaug," Balin said, laughter mixed within his voice.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Thorin said lamely and Balin chuckled.

"You are (I daresay, lad) a terrible liar. That answer would fool no one."

Thorin decided not to say anything - he was slightly embarrassed that his feelings for the young witch were so obviously on show for his men. Also, the dwarf King was rather shy about expressing his affections and Balin knew that aspect about his character well.

"Lad, do not be shy. I believe this is a good thing - Sophie seems to be doing you well. She makes you happy, why, anybody can see that," Balin said gently and he placed his had lightly on Thorin's shoulder just as a father would to his son.

Thorin was both honored and glad to have Balin on the quest - the old dwarf understood him better than anyone else. The dwarf King was just about to thank Balin, but he was interrupted by a fearful scream from outside. Thorin's blood froze - the scream was Sophie's. Immediately Thorin stood up and began running out the door of the kitchen, Balin and the other dwarves who were also inside the house following his urgent footsteps. When Thorin arrived outside he momentarily froze in shock. Dwalin and Bilbo were both on the ground in front of him, a few metres from the middle of the yard where a large, black bear stood bearing its sharp teeth. The bear was the largest beast Thorin had ever seen in his entire life, but the dwarf King wasn't focusing on its monstrous size. The beast was standing over a small body - Sophie's body. The young witch was screaming and trying to escape, but the bear had its paws on either side of her shoulders, pinning her to the ground. The bear raised one of its gigantic paws that held its threatening claws up into the air, before letting out a frightening roar.

"No!" Thorin yelled and he began to charge towards the beast with his Orcrist pulled out.

Thorin was not going to stand and do nothing.

He was not going to sit around and watch the bear rip Sophie into pieces.


	19. Doors locked and windows shut

Chapter Nineteen

Sophie lay on the ground staring in horror at the monstrous bear standing on top of her. The mad creature of Beorn's transformation had sprung out of nowhere, neither she nor any of the other company members had spotted it entering the grounds before it was too late. Sophie did not realize that unlike Animaguses from the wizarding world, Beorn did not retain his human mind when he transformed into a bear. He was more like a werewolf than an Animagus in that aspect. Dwalin had tried to protect his young pupil, but the bear merely flicked the dwarf aside as though he was nothing more than a pesky insect.

"No!"

Not far away she could hear Thorin's urgent voice. Sophie tried to pull her wand out from beneath her cloak but the bear only gripped her stronger, making it impossible for her to move her arms. The animal roared again and Sophie could feel its hot breath on her neck and the lens of her glasses steamed up due to the heat.

Thorin did not even feel the pain in his leg where Azog's warg had bitten him, as he continued charging towards the black bear. He was just about to bring his sword down onto the beast's back when the dwarf King was pushed back by a surprisingly strong arm. Frustrated, Thorin turned around to face the Grey Wizard. Gandalf pointed his staff at the large creature and ordered in an authoritative voice.

"Stop, Beorn! Sophie is not your enemy. You will not harm her!"

As the wizard spoke those words out loud the large stone sitting on the end of his wooden staff glowed a bright red. The ember light seemed to calm the bear down and the storm in its eyes passed as it looked around to find a group of people pointing their weapons at it. Finding itself to be outnumbered, the bear began backing off into the forest, where it ran away into the depth of the trees. Thorin breathed in relief as he quickened his steps towards Sophie who was still on the ground and visibly shaking.

As Sophie's tense body began to relax from the shock, she felt tears pricking her eyes and threatening to roll down. The young witch hastily wiped her eyes with the back of her hand - it was okay now, she wasn't hurt so there was no point in crying about the incident. Sophie felt a strong arm pull her up from the ground. Thorin quickly checked Sophie's body up and down for any injuries, sucking in his breath at the small bit of skin that was bleeding around her neck area.

"Are you alright?" the dwarf King asked, and Sophie nodded.

The other company members were also obviously outraged by the sudden attack and everyone began yelling out at once.

"Our host is going to kill us!" Bofur yelled and a few of the dwarves waved their weapons in agreement.

"We should never have come here!"

"What if he comes back?!" Bilbo squeaked.

"ENOUGH!" Gandalf's booming voice drowned out everyone's protests and yells.

Thorin said nothing as he held Sophie's hand tight and looked back towards the direction of the forest where the bear had run away into. When the company members had quieted down Gandalf spoke again.

"You are far safer here at Master Beorn's home than you will be anywhere else, so there is no need to get yourselves into a panic. Goodness, you dwarves are even more panicking than Sophie and she was the one who was under the bear's claws, not you lot! Now, I suggest you all retreat inside and keep all the doors locked and windows shut (for we do not know if Beorn will return in his bear form). I shall go to the forest and search for Beorn - I should think our host will be quite bewildered at the situation."

Since nobody had any better ideas, the company made their way back inside Beorn's kitchen whilst still yelling over to each other in loud voices. Sophie and Thorin were the last of the group to go in. The young witch did not realize that her hands were still clasped in Thorin's until he gently pulled her along with him. The dwarf King seemed determined not to let her out of his sight anymore – it frustrated Thorin to think that he could not be there to protect Sophie.

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The company spent the rest of the day indoors as they waited for Gandalf and Beorn to return. Sophie and Bilbo could not deny the fact that they were slightly disappointed in that they could not enjoy the warm sun outside – it had been a while since the weather had been this fine. On the other hand, the dwarves whose home was under the mountains, did not mind as much and the members occupied themselves with various activities around the house. It was Bofur who found Beorn's hand crafted flute in a dusty cupboard. After a few hearty songs, the horrific events of the morning was forgotten and everyone were soon enjoying themselves as they shared good, hearty laughs with one another. A few of the dwarves seated themselves around next to each other in a large circle, pulling the clueless Sophie and Bilbo to join them.

"You two are now dwarves at heart, so it is only right that you should learn some old dwarf tunes," Kili told them as he brought them to the centre of the circle.

Sophie and Bilbo stood surrounded by the dwarves who all were obviously in a good mood. Kili grinned at the two small figures and clapped his hands.

"Now, we are going to teach you two how to do this traditional dwarven dance. It's very easy, even Bombur over there can do it!"

The other dwarves including Bombur laughed and cheered in agreement. Sophie didn't feel too sure. She was never a dancer and she definitely did not do a great deal of it whilst living with Radagast. But the dwarves were determined to get her and Bilbo moving. Kili took Bilbo and Sophie by the hands and the three people stood in a straight line.

"Okay first you have to spin around, no not that way, Bilbo - towards Sophie...That's it! Now take three steps forward and three steps back. Simple enough right?"

Indeed, the dance didn't seem too hard. Bofur started playing a light tune on the wooden flute and Sophie moved in the direction Kili had directed her to move. Suddenly the dwarves began clapping faster and the tune got faster aswell. Sophie and Bilbo were soon spinning around wildly with Kili. The dwarves continued singing and cheering the three people on. Although the dance made her dizzy, Sophie found she was having a lot of fun and she let out a laugh as Kili spun her round and round.

The dwarves who were not sitting in the circle (Dwalin, Balin and Thorin) stood leaning in the doorway, watching amusedly at the small hobbit and witch dancing with young Kili. Thorin grinned as Sophie laughed, her voice sounded like a little bell. Her movements were not as polished nor graceful as a professional dancer, but Thorin found that he loved her imperfections as well. It was good to see his men having a good time, for soon they will have to enter Mirkwood and then of the situation calls for it, fight a dragon. The burden was heavy in his mind, but Thorin pushed the thought out for the moment.

By the fifth round of the dance Sophie and Bilbo were absolutely exhausted and they both dropped their bodies onto the ground, breathless. The company members were still laughing and clapping each other on the back when there was a loud knock at the door. The room fell silent, nobody was sure whether they should open the door for the person on the other side. Don't be silly, Sophie told herself firmly. If Beorn was still in his bear form he would not be able to knock so courteously on the door as a normal person would.

"Stay here, all of you," Thorin ordered as he walked out into the hallway.

Thankfully it was not a large bear waiting for the dwarf King when he opened the door. Gandalf and a rather sheepish looking Beorn stood waiting patiently. Ignoring Beorn, Thorin nodded at the Grey Wizard and stepped back into the kitchen. Gandalf and Beorn followed in after him. Hanging on the skin changer's back was a large deer, now dead. The deer could have been Sophie or one of his men, the thought sent chills down Thorin's spine.

There was an awkward silence when Beorn walked into the kitchen. It was a very strange situation indeed, with the host of the house looking so uncomfortable in his own home. The other dwarves, especially Thorin (who had swiftly moved over to Sophie's side) looked on at the skin changer with suspicious eyes. They seemed to think that Beorn could suddenly transform into a large bear right now in the middle of the kitchen. Beorn coughed loudly and dropped his head in shame.

"Gandalf has told me what happened this morning in the yard. I am so terribly sorry. It was a good thing that there was little damage," Beorn said sorrowfully.

Sophie's heart softened towards the old skin changer - it was not his fault that he is not able to retain a human mind when he transforms into such a fearful animal. She remembered the advise Jesse had given her when she was little,

_"Don't be afraid or hate werewolves, sis. Pity them instead - transforming into a werewolf is painful not just in body, but also in the mind."_

Remembering Jesse's wise words, Sophie nodded understandingly at the skin changer. However Thorin did not look very impressed at all.

"A 'little' damage?! You had Sophie pinned to the ground! You could have killed her!" He growled angrily.

Beorn shifted the dead deer on his back and scratched his head. When he lifted his head to face Sophie, the young witch saw regret and sorrow, and she felt foolish for having been afraid of the poor man.

"That thought haunts my mind also. It was fortunate that Gandalf was there to stop me. I am normally quite a docile creature, please forgive me. I mean no harm to any of you."

Sophie gave Beorn the biggest smile she could manage. She forgave the skin changer at that moment, and she was no longer afraid. Sophie walked over to Beorn and squeezed his arm with reassurance.

"It's not your fault, Beorn. You didn't hurt me and I know you didn't mean to do what you did either. Please, do not berate yourself."

Beorn stared at Sophie with a relieved expression, small tears forming in his eyes. Sophie's own chest tightened at the sight of such a large man shedding tears - Beorn must have really felt bad.

"You are so kind to me, thank you Sophie. Most people are repelled by me - that's why I live by myself in the woods," Beorn said sorrowfully, letting out a noisy sniff.

There was a loud silence that followed after. The only sound that could be heard for the next few minutes was Beorn's loud sniffing and hiccuping as the skin changer began crying unashamedly. Gandalf walked from the doorway where he had been standing and watching the entire scene, towards Beorn - the old wizard decided that he had cried quite long enough and was now just feeling sorry for himself. Gandalf swiftly walked over and began lighting a lamp with the flames that formed at the tip of his fingers.

"Sophie is right. Nobody blames you, Beorn. Now, I believe it is quite past dinnertime and no doubt everybody is hungry. Bilbo, did you know Beorn makes the most delicious venison stew? I'm sure you will find his cooking most delightful."

Gandalf gave Beorn a meaningful look as he said this, and their host snapped his head up, as if realizing for the first time that everyone was watching him. Beorn nodded and walked away into the kitchen, sniffing loudly and muttering "yes, yes of course," to himself over and over again. Their host certainly was an odd man, the company members all thought to themselves.


	20. A drunken night

Chapter twenty

Gandalf had not been lying when he had said that Beorn cooked the best venison stew. The delicious aroma of his cooking floated out of the kitchen, making everyone waiting in the house salivate in hunger. When dinner was finally ready and Beorn called the company into the dining room that was connected to the kitchen, an impressive assortment of foods were waiting for them on the dining table. There were buttery dinner rolls that had been warmed in the stone oven, bright red apples chopped daintily into quarters, and slices of ham piled on large plates, all accompanying the large pot of steaming venison stew that sat at the centre of everything. Beorn had also placed jugs of honey mead, raspberry wine with a tower of his homemade honey bread all around the table - it felt like a festive season with all the delicious food just waiting to be eaten. Not having had a decent meal in the past two weeks since leaving Rivendell, the company members were all famished. Everyone began seating themselves eagerly around the wooden table, not holding back any compliments towards the skin changer. Sophie smiled to herself - it seemed as though the dwarves had forgiven their host solely because of all the lovely food he had prepared for them.

Beorn stayed close to Sophie's side, like a loyal dog. He still hadn't forgiven himself for his actions and Sophie was beginning to feel a bit awkward with all the attention and extra servings she was receiving every five minutes from the skin changer. It was well into dinnertime when Gandalf suddenly tapped on his plate with the end of his spoon lightly, catching everyone's attention. It was probably a good time to make any announcements if there were any - a little bit longer and the alcohol would have kicked in. The company members stopped talking and when the volume of voices quieted down all eyes turned to the grey wizard.

"I am sorry to have to tell you that I will no longer be assisting you all on this quest," Gandalf announced sorrowfully.

The company members could not hide their disappointment and shock. As hard as she tried, Sophie could not help but feel that Gandalf was abandoning the company during a time when he was needed the most. They needed all the help they could get if they were going to face Smaug, and Gandalf's absence would no doubt be huge. By the looks on Bilbo's and the other dwarves' faces, it appeared as though they were also thinking the same thing as the young witch.

"Would it be too much to ask why you have come to this decision?" Thorin asked Gandalf with a sigh.

He was sorry that the old wizard was not coming with them, but the dwarf King knew he could never be able to change Gandalf's mind. Gandalf stroked his beard thoughtfully with a serious expression in his wise eyes. Sophie noticed the concern and worry edged on his wrinkled face.

"I fear that a new force of evil has managed to enter Middle Earth. It is my duty to travel North to find out more information. But do not burden yourselves with this issue - I sense that it is one is beyond this time period. Nevertheless, it cannot be ignored and I will have to leave you all in the first light of dawn."

The rest of the dinner proceeded warmly as ever, although a slice of gaiety was obviously lost. It was in the back of the minds of all the company members as to how they would continue on the remainder of their quest without Gandalf. But the dwarves were determined not to waste away good food on such somber thoughts. Balin stood up on the large chair he had been sitting on, and raised his glass to toast the health of everyone in the room. Beorn stood up after the old dwarf sat down and also gave a toast to Thorin and his company, giving their quest his blessing. A few other dwarves stood up one at a time after Beorn, each making an individual toast. By the end of the entire ritual, Sophie was definitely feeling the alcohol travel around inside her system and she let out an involuntary yawn. Bilbo was also nodding off next to Sophie, the hobbit was quite rosy around the cheeks and he kept hiccupping every five minutes. All the drinking had relifted the dwarves' spirits and the rowdy group were again singing loudly (and might I add, rather out of tune!) with their arms around each others shoulders.

Sophie giggled as Bombur climbed on top of Beorn's large dining table and (ignoring the horrified look on the skin-changer's face) began using it as his own personal stage, performing a very odd dance that mostly involved his large belly. The dwarves who were watching roared with laughter, except Thorin and Balin who maintained their dignified manner and fortunately were not acting half as silly as the others were. Another hour passed like this, and Sophie yawned again. Any minute longer and she was sure her head was going to fall on the table - Bilbo was already sound asleep in his seat, snoring slightly. As discreetly as she could manage, the young witch scraped the chair behind her as she stood up to retreat to her room to sleep. Luckily for her, most of the dwarves were too drunk to notice Sophie slip away...only Thorin saw the young witch leave the table quietly.

All the wine she had drank made it difficult for Sophie to concentrate as she tried to clear her hazy vision and find the right room. The young witch hooted to herself - for the first time ever in twenty-five years, she was drunk. Sophie found she couldn't feel the tips of her toes touching the soft carpet and all of a sudden, her knees began to give away from beneath her. Sophie was sure she was going to drop down onto the ground, when she felt two strong arms grab her waist to steady her balance.

"Careful," Thorin told her in a soft voice, his voice surprisingly sounding very sober.

Sophie suddenly felt very shy and embarrassed. Here she was, drunk and giggling to herself like a little girl, and not even being able to stand up on her own two legs, whereas Thorin's eyes did not hide the fact that the wine had had very little effect on his body. The young witch felt foolish for not being able to judge her drinking limit and she didn't know what to say or do. The dwarf King still had his arms wrapped around Sophie's waist, and the position of the two people made it look as though Thorin was embracing Sophie from the back. They stayed like this for a few minutes - neither Sophie nor Thorin seemed to want to move away. It surprised Sophie that she could find so much security and happiness in one man's embrace, and her heart beat fast at the undeniably real possibility that she had fallen deeply in love with the King of Erebor.

"Thorin," she whispered quietly.

Sophie wanted the dwarf King to keep holding her forever, but they had a quest to pursue. Gently, the young witch pulled herself away from Thorin. Eventually Thorin followed her actions and slowly released Sophie from his embrace, his fingers lingering longingly around her small hips for a few more moments. The dwarf King could not deny the fact that he wanted to take Sophie into his arms again and kiss the witch tenderly on the lips. But he also knew that he must not rush into such matters - and for Sophie, he could wait as long as she needed.

It was just as well. For as soon as Thorin had released his arms from around Sophie, Bilbo stumbled into the hallway. The hobbit's face was flushed redder than before, and as hard as she tried, Sophie couldn't supress the giggle passing out of her lips. Bilbo seemed to not realise Thorin and Sophie's presence, and he continued to sway over to his room (it was a miracle he even found it!) before closing the door firmly shut behind him. Sophie decided it was time for her to retreat to her room as well and she turned around to face Thorin. Although they were no longer in an embrace, the two figures were still standing very close to each other.

"Good night," she said softly to the dwarf King.

Thorin smiled and he looked down at the young witch.

"Good night, Sophie. If you should need anything just come find me."

Sophie nodded and she walked into her room, quietly closing the door behind her. The last thing she saw was Thorin looking at her, the smile reaching all the way to his eyes. The young witch knew in her heart that tonight, there will be no nightmares to haunt her.

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Thorin stood outside Sophie's room for a few more seconds before slowly making his way back into the dining room. His men were all asleep with their heads dropped onto the table, and he could see Beorn was also nodding off to sleep in the corner. Thorin did a quick head count of his comany members and realised that Gandalf was missing. The dwarf King retreated out of the dining room and after a bit of searching, found the grey wizard in the living room. Gandalf was just putting on his large hat when Thorin walked in, and he smiled at the confused dwarf King.

"It is not yet dawn," Thorin inquired with raised eyebrows.

"Better leave as soon as possible. Perhaps if all goes well, I can buy some extra time to visit you all in Erebor," Gandalf answered with a wink as he wrapped the blue scarf around his neck.

Thorin did not want Gandalf to leave, but he knew the old wizard had made his mind up, so the dwarf King stood silently as he watched Gandalf pack the rest of his belongings. When he had finished packing, Gandalf walked towards the front door. Thorin followed the grey wizard out of the living room and waited patiently as Gandalf opened the large wooden door. The dwarf King thought Gandalf would simply leave, and he was surprised when the old wizard turned around and looked down at him from his great height.

"I just want you to remember, Thorin; Love is greater and more valuable than all the riches under the mountain put together. Love for your men, your friends and family...they are not so easy to find. You have been truly blessed to have so many people who love and care for you, Thorin - I hope you will continue to treasure it."

Thorin did not really understand why Gandalf was suddenly telling him all this, but he nodded and decided to take the wizard's advice to heart. Gandalf nodded at Thorin one last time before walking out into the front yard where Beorn's stallion was silently waiting. Thorin stood where he was and watched Gandalf ride away into the night. The wizard's final words to him left Thorin strangely unnerved and cautious. He couldn't toss the feeling that the old wizard knew something about his character and possibly even his fate. The dwarf King remained standing in the same place long after the sound of the hooves of Gandalf's horse could no longer be heard.

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**Thanks for reading~**


	21. Evil advances

Chapter Twenty-one

**Azog sat on his warg, visibly fuming in rage. It had been weeks since he had last seen that filthy dwarf and his group of men. The eagles had carried away his prey - he had been so close to killing Thorin and cutting off his head. And it was all because of that hobbit and witch. Azog had no idea how Thorin had managed to recruit a witch into his company, but it had caught him off guard completely. Azog angrily kicked one of his faultless orc followers who cowered away in fear at his master's anger.**

**"I will get Thorin's head _and_ kill his precious witch as well," the pale orc roared angrily into the distance.**

**A slight rustle in the bushes made Azog stop yelling and concentrate his senses to where the sound had come from. The pale orc smirked in glee - finally he had found the dwarf scum. Azog ordered to his orcs in the black speech to follow him as he raced through the trees on his warg. His white warg pounced on a body hiding behind the shrubs, the creature bared its teeth threateningly at the person lying underneath its claws. Azog was annoyed and disappointed when he discovered that the person wasn't Thorin, but an ill looking middle-aged man. Lying down, the man did not appear much taller than a dwarf and by his ragged appearance it didn't look as though he was anyone important. Nonetheless Azog wasn't a very merciful orc and he signaled his warg to kill him. But just as the warg opened its mouth to crush the man's neck between its jaws, the man opened his mouth to speak.**

**"You want to kill Thorin, right?" He asked in an urgent voice.**

**Azog pulled his warg back as he stared down at the man in suspicion.**

**"And how do you know that?" The pale orc hissed in a dangerous voice.**

**"My name is Mortemo and I've been following your trail for a long time. You see, I am no ordinary man."**

**It was then that Azog noticed a strange looking stick poking out of the man's waist pocket. Slowly, the puzzles began piecing themselves in his head.**

**"You are a wizard," he stated with interest.**

**Perhaps the wizard could help him find the dwarf scum and kill him. The wizard seemed to be thinking the same thing and he nodded in approval.**

**"With my magic, finding Thorin and his company will be nothing more than a piece of cake," he said looking up hopefully at the pale orc who still had his warg standing on top of the wizard's body.**

**"And how do I know I can trust you? What is in it for you, wizard?" Azog asked as he continued staring with his cold, red eyes.**

**Mortemo answered the pale orc's interrogation with an expression that burned in anger.**

**"There is a particular little witch travelling in that expedition. It's because of her I've been stuck in this world, rotting twelve years of my life away. We were transported to this world together - at least I got to kill her brother. I am going to kill her too, if that's the last thing I do. I can help you find Thorin and you can do what you want with him - Just give me the witch!"**

**A smirk began to play on Azog's face as he ordered his warg off Mortemo's body. Yes, the wizard was his key to finding Thorin. Their thirst for revenge had brought the pale orc and the wizard on the same mission. Together, they will find the dwarf King and witch, and blood will be spilt.**

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The company stood outside Beorn's house with new supplies, as they readied themselves to embark on the next part of their quest. Sophie had been sad when she had come out of her room for breakfast in the morning to find that Gandalf had already left. What important duty could the wizard possibly have that he needed to leave so early without a final goodbye?

Last night's drunken ordeal meant most of the dwarves were suffering from a dreadful hangover, and their movements were much slower and clumsier - It was already near midday when everything was finally packed and ready. Beorn stood facing the company members with a sorrowful expression on his face. He didn't get many visitors and he was sad to see the group leave.

"You could always stay a day longer?" the skin changer suggested to Thorin, and his face fell when the dwarf King tactfully shook his head.

"We must move on if we are to reach Erebor before Durin's day. Your kindness and hospitality will not be forgotten, Beorn the great skin changer," Thorin said and Sophie could feel the kingliness come out from the tone of his voice.

Beorn smiled and bowed his head slightly.

"And I to you, Thorin, King under the mountain. May your quest be ever blessed."

There were many farewells and genuine smiles exchanged between each of the company members and the skin changer. When it came to Sophie's turn, Beorn stooped down from his great height and gave the young witch a tight bear-hug. _He is such a kind man,_ Sophie thought to herself. It was unfortunate that he could not control his mind when he transformed into a bear. Thorin stood quietly, looking at Sophie's face with a questioning face.

"You look sad," he said softly to the young witch.

"It's just I feel so sorry for Beorn. In the end he is just like us...he needs a home where he can feel a sense of belonging."

Thorin smiled sadly at Sophie's answer and nodded. She was right - Beorn did not really fit in anywhere else. In many ways he was like the dwarves who had lost their home to Smaug and were now no more than refugees, roaming from city to city. Thorin had had enough of that kind of life, which was part of the reason as to why he had decided to take on this perilous quest. The dwarf King made a promise to himself in his head to treat the skin changer more kindly if they were ever to cross paths again.

The company rode on the ponies lent to them by Beorn, in a westward direction. When they had ridden for around an hour, Beorn's home was nothing more than a mere speck in the distance. At this point the company members placed their supplies onto their backs and released the ponies back to the direction of Beorn's home - it was too risky to take them any further.

Thorin continued to lead his company down a steep hill when at last they stood face to face with the edge of the dark forest of Mirkwood. Even from the outside the place looked dreary and shady, they could not see more than a few meters because of the pitch black darkness. The nervous atmosphere by all the company members could be felt, even though Kili and Fili tried to lighten the mood by cracking some dry jokes. Sophie swallowed hard - it would be very easy to get lost in a place like Mirkwood, and who knew what dangers awaited them amongst the dense trees. She had read in one of Radagast's many scrolls when she was young about terrifying creatures such as giant spiders that resided in the most sinister parts of the forest.

Upon sensing Sophie's concern and the tension amongst the rest of his men, Thorin gently pulled Sophie by the arm to his side. Thorin gave the young witch's arm a slight squeeze to reassure her before turning to face the rest of the company.

"Make sure to stick together and do not wander off by yourselves," he ordered, making eye contact with each and every one of his men.

The dwarves nodded at their leader's words and begrudgingly began following the trail leading into the dark forest. Before entering the forest himself, Thorin kept his hold on Sophie - it was a firm but gentle hold.

"Stay with me, I will protect you," Thorin whispered quietly in Sophie's ear as the young witch nodded nervously.

Thorin and his company began their long journey through the forest of Mirkwood, weary of the dangers that lay ahead of them. The dwarf King prayed to the great Mahal to guide them through the elves' territory safely.


End file.
